aeroplane

noun

aero·​plane ˈer-ə-ˌplān 

plural aeroplanes

British

: airplane

One day it may be possible to devise a way of keeping birds away from aeroplanes, although for the moment the best approach seems to be to keep aeroplanes away from birds.

—Nature

A special airmail flight will be made on 6 August 1989 to commemorate the first aeroplane crossing of a major body of water in Australia by Captain Harry Butler.

—Australian Stamp Bulletin

Synonyms

• airplane
• plane

Examples of aeroplane in a Sentence

an exhibit of a few of the aeroplanes that won the Battle of Britain

Recent Examples on the Web

Indian airlines are already placing orders for record numbers of aeroplanes. —Niharika Sharma, Quartz, 21 Mar. 2023

On an aeroplane; all things Are brought into their deep relativity People. —Jonathan Michael Majors, The New Republic, 29 Dec. 2022

The aviation industry, however, worries about interference with crucial aircraft instruments like altimeters, which measure how far above the ground an aeroplane is travelling. —Niharika Sharma, Quartz, 18 Jan. 2022

Added to this are rapid-fire guns and a constant lookout from the ship and from aeroplane scouts. —Popular Mechanics Editors, Popular Mechanics, 8 Apr. 2021

Chris Adamson remembers being sent out to local hardware shops to find brooms of various bristle strengths, and asked to track down a specific kind of elastic used to power the propeller of a model aeroplane. —Tom Maxwell, Longreads, 3 Sep. 2020

An average aeroplane, weighing 1,000 lb., will oppose not more than 25 sq. —Victor Lougheed, Popular Mechanics, 13 Aug. 2020

Yet the problem of the aeroplane is inherently complex. —Victor Lougheed, Popular Mechanics, 13 Aug. 2020

That keeps the contents safe in aeroplane holds and on delivery lorries. —The Economist, 22 June 2020

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Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French aéroplane, from aéro- aero- + -plane, probably from feminine of plan "flat, level," borrowed from Latin plānus — more at floor entry 1

First Known Use

1868, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing aeroplane

• aeroplane mode

• aeroplane mode

Kids Definition

aeroplane

aero·​plane ˈar-ə-ˌplān 

ˈer-

chiefly British variant of airplane