UAP

abbreviation or noun

ˌyü-ˌā-ˈpē 

plural UAP or UAPs

: unidentified aerial phenomenon, unidentified anomalous phenomenon

—used especially as an alternative to UFO or unidentified flying object

… UFO has been replaced by UAP. Scientists and government officials are using the new acronym in an attempt to get away from the stigma and assumptions of little green men that persist when people think of UFOs. Until recently, UAP stood for "unidentified aerial phenomena," but last year's National Defense Authorization Act tweaked the term to stand for "unidentified anomalous phenomena," a broader catch-all category.

—Cameron Joseph

UAP—unidentified aerial (or anomalous) phenomenon—is apparently now preferred over UFO, or unidentified flying object. Assertions have been made that people associate "UFO" with alien visitors, whereas the new "UAP" terminology can be more readily associated with additional phenomena, perhaps swamp gas.

—Matthew J. Sharps

Since 2017, my life has been dominated by efforts to help Congress and the public discover the truth about unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), what many still refer to as UFOs.

—Christopher Mellon

Yet given the growing public clamor (and congressional clamor, for that matter) for information about UFOs, NASA felt compelled to provide the public with some answers. Consequently on Monday the federal agency launched a new study with 16 members for the purpose of determining the best way for NASA to further study what the scientists refer to as "UAPs" (unidentified aerial phenomena).

—salon.com

Examples of UAP in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The statement on his Truth Social platform signals new transparency on unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), meaning unexplained observations in the sky, an issue that has drawn Washington’s attention for years. —Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 20 Feb. 2026

But many believers and UAP disclosure proponents remain optimistic. —Brett Tingley, Space.com, 20 Feb. 2026

Still, the Department of War, formerly known as the Department of Defense, advises that most UAP sightings can actually be identified as planes, balloons, drones and weather events. —Kate Perez, USA Today, 16 Feb. 2026

The studio has coming up movies from auspices of both F1 (untitled UAP project) and CODA (Being Heumann); as well as Outcome, starring Jonah Hill, Keanu Reeves, Cameron Diaz and Matt Bomer; and a Stephen Chbosky project starring Mark Wahlberg. —Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 11 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1963, in the meaning defined above