aircraft

noun

air·​craft ˈer-ˌkraft 

plural aircraft

often attributive

: a vehicle (such as an airplane or balloon) for traveling through the air

Examples of aircraft in a Sentence

a company that manufactures aircraft

Recent Examples on the Web

According to the report, electrical power line installers make over $85,000 a year, and aircraft mechanics technicians have an average annual salary of $76,260. —Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 9 July 2025

The aircraft involved, an Airbus A319 operated by the low-cost Spanish airline Volotea, was preparing to takeoff from Bergamo for Asturias, in northern Spain, when the incident occurred Tuesday morning, CBS News reported. —Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 8 July 2025

It is designed to make sure aircraft landing on the carriers slow down quickly and safely. —Ellie Cook, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 July 2025

The aircraft had just left the stand at Milan Bergamo Airport en route to Asturias, northwestern Spain, on Tuesday morning local time, according to CNN affiliate Sky TG24, when the incident occurred. —Antonia Mortensen, CNN Money, 8 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1845, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing aircraft

• aircraft carrier
• rotary-wing aircraft

Rhymes for aircraft

• abaft
• camshaft
• crankshaft
• downdraft
• engraft
• priestcraft
• redraft
• schoolcraft
• spacecraft
• stagecraft
• statecraft
• updraft

Kids Definition

aircraft

noun

air·​craft ˈa(ə)r-ˌkraft 

ˈe(ə)r-

plural aircraft

: a machine (as an airplane, glider, or helicopter) that can travel through the air and that is supported either by its own buoyancy or by the action of the air against its surfaces