airplane
gb/ˈɛɹplˌeɪn/ us/ˈɛɹplˌeɪn/
A1
English
~ 9800
Senses
0 senses
Noun
A1
entity
1
Powered aircraft with fixed wings
A machine with wings that flies in the sky and takes people or things from one place to another.
Usage pattern:
[someone] is on an airplane
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse "airplane" with "airport" and "airline." "Airplane" is the flying vehicle, "airport" is the place where airplanes take off and land, and "airline" is the company that operates flights. Some learners also mix American "airplane" with British "aeroplane"; both mean the same thing, but "airplane" is standard in American English.
Synonyms
plane (More common and slightly more informal in everyday speech; meaning is the same in most contexts.)
|
aircraft (More general and slightly more technical; includes airplanes, helicopters, and other flying vehicles.)
Antonyms
car (A common vehicle for travel on roads, contrasting with an airplane, which travels in the air.)
Collocations
commercial airplane
|passenger airplane
|airplane ticket
|airplane seat
|airplane safety
|airplane crash
Themes
travel
|transport
|technology
|transportation
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The airplane landed safely after a long flight from Tokyo.
- We watched the airplane take off and disappear into the clouds.
- She prefers to travel by airplane because it is faster than driving.
- The company bought a new airplane for international routes.
- From my window seat, I could see another airplane flying below us.
Learner examples
- The airplane is ready to leave.
- We flew to New York by airplane.
- I like to sit near the window on the airplane.
- The airplane is high in the sky.
- Many people are afraid to go on an airplane.
Grammar
Dictionary form
airplane
IPA
GB/ˈɛɹplˌeɪn/
US/ˈɛɹplˌeɪn/
Syllables & stress
air - plane (2 syllables)
Stress on 1st syllable (air)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: airplane
- Plural: airplanes
Word family
Expressions
paper airplane
1/pˈeɪpɚ ˈɛɹplˌeɪn/
fixed phrase
Toy airplane made of folded paper
A small toy that looks like an airplane, made by folding a piece of paper so that it can glide through the air.
Examples
- The children made a paper airplane and threw it across the classroom.
- He showed his son how to fold a paper airplane that could fly far.
- A paper airplane landed on my desk with a funny message written on it.
airplane mode
1/ˈɛɹplˌeɪn mˈoʊd/
fixed phrase
Device setting that disables signals
A setting on a phone, tablet, or laptop that turns off Wi‑Fi, mobile data, and other wireless signals.
Examples
- Please switch your phone to airplane mode before takeoff.
- I put my phone in airplane mode to save battery during the day.
- The tablet was still in airplane mode, so it couldn’t connect to the internet.
airplane mode
2/ˈɛɹplˌeɪn mˈoʊd/
fixed phrase
technical
device setting to disable wireless signals
A setting on a phone or device that turns off Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and mobile signals.
Examples
- Please switch your phone to airplane mode before departure.
- Airplane mode also helps save battery life.