quadcopter

noun

quad·​cop·​ter ˈkwäd-ˌkäp-tər 

plural quadcopters

: a drone (see drone entry 1 sense 2) deriving lift from four separate rotors each oriented about a vertical axis : quadrotor

It's a quadcopter, meaning it's a miniature helicopter with four rotors; basically it looks like a giant four-leaf clover designed by Darth Vader.

—Lev Grossman

A remote control quadcopter-type model helicopter flew directly through the U.S. Coast Guard base at the Arcata-Eureka Airport in McKinleyville on Saturday afternoon …

—Eureka Times Standard (California)

Examples of quadcopter in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Flying Cyber Spy Viper has similar performance specifications to other small quadcopters. —David Hambling, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025

The SkyRaider was knocked out of the air and contact was momentarily lost with the quadcopter due to the massive recoil, though the little aircraft did survive and communications were reestablished. —New Atlas, 24 Aug. 2025

At the aid site, his friends say Obeid was killed by armaments dropped by an Israeli quadcopter. —Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 17 Aug. 2025

To hoist the orb onto the overhead line, a crew member attaches it to a quadcopter drone and pilots it up with a remote control. —IEEE Spectrum, 13 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

quad entry 5 + -copter (in helicopter entry 1)

First Known Use

2004, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for quadcopter

• adopter
• copter
• helicopter