airplane

noun

air·​plane ˈer-ˌplān 

: a powered heavier-than-air aircraft with fixed wings from which it derives most of its lift

Illustration of airplane

• 1 weather radar
• 2 cockpit
• 3 jet engine
• 4 engine pod
• 5 pylon
• 6 wing
• 7 vertical stabilizer
• 8 rudder
• 9 10 tabs
• 11 elevator
• 12 horizontal stabilizer
• 13 inboard flap
• 14 inboard spoiler
• 15 16 tabs
• 17 aileron
• 18 outboard flap
• 19 outboard spoiler
• 20 sound suppressor
• 21 thrust reverser
• 22 cabin air intake
• 23 fuselage
• 24 nose landing gear

Synonyms of airplane

• plane
• aeroplane
• airliner

Examples of airplane in a Sentence

my uncle learned how to fly an airplane while serving in the air force

Recent Examples on the Web

Construction workers seen installing panels in the exterior of Modules 3 and 4 as a Delta airplane flies by on Wednesday, March 27, 2024. —Emma Hurt, AJC.com, 2 Jan. 2026

The poster, whose name is Shannon White, shared a video of herself in late November, seated on an airplane looking unhappy before panning to her boyfriend by the window seat. —Marina Watts, PEOPLE, 31 Dec. 2025

Until 2025, wine in the US could be legally sold only in a limited number of sizes, from airplane bottles to large formats named after biblical kings. —Bloomberg, Mercury News, 31 Dec. 2025

In recent years, the FAA has been taking longer to certify even conventional airplanes and helicopters, which the industry blames on staffing shortages at the agency and more cautious decision-making in the wake of the Boeing 737 Max crisis. —IEEE Spectrum, 28 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

alteration of aeroplane

First Known Use

1906, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing airplane

• airplane mode

Rhymes for airplane

• abstain
• alkane
• arcane
• arraign
• attain
• backplane
• betaine
• biplane
• blockchain
• butane
• campaign
• cetane

Kids Definition

airplane

noun

air·​plane ˈa(ə)r-ˌplān 

ˈe(ə)r-

: a fixed-wing heavier-than-air aircraft that is driven by a propeller or by a forceful stream of gases backward and is supported by the reaction of the air against its wings