airborne

adjective

air·​borne ˈer-ˌbȯrn 

1

: done or being in the air : being off the ground: such as

a

: carried through the air (as by an aircraft)

b

: supported especially by aerodynamic forces or propelled through the air by force

a plane becoming airborne

c

: transported or carried by the air

airborne allergens

2

: trained for deployment by air and especially by parachute

airborne troops

Examples of airborne in a Sentence

Once the plane was airborne I loosened my seat belt.

Thousands of airborne troops parachuted behind enemy lines.

Recent Examples on the Web

Measles symptoms Measles becomes airborne and spreads when a sick person coughs or sneezes. —Mark Prussin, CBS News, 20 Dec. 2025

Their preliminary investigation suggests that the aircraft departed from one runway and attempted to land on another after being airborne for about ten minutes, Graham said. —Victoria Arancio, ABC News, 20 Dec. 2025

The study represents the most detailed long-term analysis of airborne environmental DNA ever conducted. —Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 18 Dec. 2025

The plane never got airborne, authorities said, per KABC. —Liam Quinn, PEOPLE, 18 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1637, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for airborne

• adorn
• blackthorn
• broomcorn
• buckhorn
• buckthorn
• careworn
• firstborn
• foodborne
• forborne
• forewarn
• forlorn
• forsworn

Kids Definition

airborne

adjective

air·​borne ˈa(ə)r-ˌbōrn 

-ˌbȯrn, 

ˈe(ə)r-

: supported or transported by air

airborne troops

Medical Definition

airborne

adjective

air·​borne -ˌbōrn 

: carried or transported by the air

airborne allergens

airborne bacteria