air|plane

air|plane «AIR _PLAYN; uh _PLAYN; see note below», noun, verb, -planed, -plan|ing.

–n.

U.S. a flying machine that has one or more planes or wings and is driven by one or more propellers or jet engines or a rocket engine. An airplane is an aircraft heavier than air, supported in flight by the action of the air flowing past or thrusting upward on its fixed wings. Also, especially British, aeroplane.

–v.i.

to fly in an airplane.

╂[< French aéroplane < aéro- air + stem of planer soar, learned borrowing from Latin plānus level]

Usage Airplane, aeroplane. In written use, airplane is the usual form in the United States (and official in the government), whereas aeroplane is more often used in Great Britain in addition to aircraft. In speech, however, the pronunciation AIR uh _PLAYN is frequent in the United States, even in reading the form airplane.