aloft

\ ə-ˈlȯft

How to pronounce aloft (audio)

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Definition of aloft

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : at or to a great height measuring the winds aloft

2 : in the air especially : in flight (as in an airplane) meals served aloft

3 : at, on, or to the masthead or the higher rigging went aloft to unfurl the sails

aloft

Definition of aloft (Entry 2 of 2)

: on top of : above bright signs aloft hotels

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Examples of aloft in a Sentence

Adverb The balloon stayed aloft for days. the ease with which he can hold a ballerina aloft with one hand is awesome

Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb In photographs from his cell, the gangly 21-year-old holds one finger aloft in a religious salute. — Souad Mekhennet, Washington Post, "Disarmed but not defused," 27 Dec. 2019 As the centerpiece of the presentation, he was given the job of holding the new ball aloft. — Rory Smith, New York Times, "At Chelsea, Hard Work as High Art," 21 Nov. 2019 Activists favoring the new law held aloft cardboard letters spelling out ‘‘decriminalised’’ in front of Parliament Buildings ahead of the sitting. — BostonGlobe.com, "LONDON — Northern Ireland is set to decriminalize abortion and set the stage for legalization of same-sex marriages as of midnight Monday, bringing its laws in line with the rest of the United Kingdom.," 22 Oct. 2019 Throw in the season-opening loss to CU at Mile High, and in three trophy games — trophies no CSU player has held aloft since 2015 — the Rams have been outscored after halftime, on average, by a count of 22-6. — Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, "Keeler: Mike Bobo just became the Clay Helton of the Mountain West Conference," 23 Nov. 2019 Not for mere whimsy does the evening begin with Byrne, alone on a stage bounded by immense curtains of metal chains, holding aloft a model of a human brain. — Peter Marks, Washington Post, "David Byrne brings his entertaining brain to Broadway in ‘American Utopia,’ and it’s totally dope," 21 Oct. 2019 In the opening scene, son Ki-woo (Choi Woo-sik) and daughter Ki-jung (Park So-dam) roam through the cramped flat holding their cell phones aloft in the search of free wi-fi. — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, "No Other Comedy Captures the Spirit of 2019 Like Parasite," 10 Oct. 2019 Being aloft twice for the better part of a day gave me plenty of time to ponder the origins and economics of long-distance flights – with plenty of time to spare for binge watching. — Jay L. Zagorsky, The Conversation, "Why would anyone want to sit on a plane for over 18 hours? An economist takes the world’s longest flight," 28 Aug. 2019 Yes, modern commercial airplanes are controlled predominantly by onboard computers while aloft. — Liaquat Ahamed, The New Yorker, "The Mail," 26 Aug. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Preposition The Leicester fans held aloft the free commemorative scarves which were left on every seat inside the stadium and sang their late chairman’s name. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Leicester rallies to beat Burnely 2-1 in Premier League," 19 Oct. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'aloft.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

10 Jan 2020

Cite this Entry

“Aloft.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aloft. Accessed 17 January 2020.

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