supercarrier

noun

su·​per·​car·​ri·​er ˌsü-pər-ˈker-ē-ər How to pronounce supercarrier (audio)
-ˈka-rē-
plural supercarriers
: a very large aircraft carrier
The revival of support for the nuclear-powered supercarrier in the last three years has been little short of miraculous.U.S. Naval Institute
Included in the supercarrier contingent are eight astonishingly large and sophisticated Nimitz-class floating cities, crewed by nearly 6,000 people and capable of launching more aircraft per minute than Chicago's O'Hare Airport …Gregg Easterbrook

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web The exercises featured a helicopter firing a small anti-ship missile, one far too small to do much damage to an American supercarrier. Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 28 July 2020 The Navy could buy a smaller or less capable version of its current $13-billion-apiece Ford-class supercarrier—a non-nuclear variant, for instance. David Axe, Forbes, 5 Apr. 2021 Symbolic gestures recognized individual Black Americans who were posthumously honored with a Pulitzer Prize, the naming of a new naval supercarrier, and the renaming of NASA headquarters in Washington. Lindsey Mcginnis, The Christian Science Monitor, 23 Dec. 2020 After the Cold War, the Navy standardized supercarrier-sized ships. Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 30 Oct. 2020 The Roosevelt aircraft carrier infamously was forced to port in Guam in March after a rapid contagion tore across the supercarrier, infecting nearly 1,000 sailors of a crew of 4,865. Abraham Mahshie, Washington Examiner, 26 Oct. 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'supercarrier.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1921, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of supercarrier was in 1921

Dictionary Entries Near supercarrier

Cite this Entry

“Supercarrier.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/supercarrier. Accessed 31 Mar. 2023.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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