cockpit

noun

cock·​pit ˈkäk-ˌpit 

1

a

: a pit or enclosure for cockfights

b

: a place noted for especially bloody, violent, or long-continued conflict

2

obsolete : the pit of a theater

3

: a compartment in a sailing warship used as quarters for junior officers and for treatment of the wounded in an engagement

4

: a space or compartment in a usually small vehicle (such as a boat, airplane, or automobile) from which it is steered, piloted, or driven see airplane illustration

Examples of cockpit in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Homendy said the agency has recovered the flight data recorder and the cockpit recorder, and the teams are investigating various factors, including crew flight experience and weather conditions. — Brittney Melton, NPR, 8 Sep. 2026

Workers in the stores went to the windows and saw the flaming cockpit coming. — Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 8 Sep. 2026

Rescue workers used a ladder to access the plane’s interior through a cockpit window, social media video showed. — Maria Aguilar Prieto, CNN Money, 7 Sep. 2026

The crash, which sent thick black smoke billowing into the sky, trapped the pilot and copilot in the cockpit and some occupants in cars, said Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Chief Ray Jadallah. — ABC News, 7 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1556, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing cockpit

• cockpit voice recorder

Rhymes for cockpit

• acquit
• admit
• armpit
• backlit
• befit
• commit
• dalit
• dendrite
• emit
• illite
• misfit
• moonlit

Kids Definition

cockpit

noun

cock·​pit ˈkäk-ˌpit 

: a space or compartment in a usually small vehicle (as a boat, airplane, or automobile) from which it is steered, piloted, or driven