cruise missile

noun

: a guided missile that has a terrain-following radar system and that flies at moderate speed and low altitude

Examples of cruise missile in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Ukraine's air force said that Russia launched 188 drones -- 86 of which were jet-powered -- and an unspecified number of ballistic and cruise missiles into the country overnight. — David Brennan, ABC News, 30 Sep. 2026

It is designed to defeat a range of aerial threats including high‑priority cruise missile threats, unmanned aerial systems (UAS), and other advanced threats. — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 30 Sep. 2026

On the night of July 30, Russia fired more than 20 cruise missiles at Lviv, a city just 45 miles from the Polish border, killing a 35-year-old police officer and injuring 38 people. — Dmytro Kuleba, Foreign Affairs, 30 Sep. 2026

By 2024, Mach landed a deal with the Army Applications Laboratory to develop a vertical-takeoff precision cruise missile—and the company’s momentum has only accelerated since. — Preston Fore, Fortune, 28 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1959, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for cruise missile

• abyssal
• dismissal
• epistle
• bristle
• fissile
• gristle
• missal
• nissl
• thistle
• whistle