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AILERON

 - 4 dictionary results

ai⋅ler⋅on

[ey-luh-ron]
–noun
1. Aeronautics. a movable surface, usually near the trailing edge of a wing, that controls the roll of the airframe or effects maneuvers, as banks and the like.
2. a wall at the end of a roof with a single slope, as that of a church aisle.

Origin:
1905–10; < F, equiv. to ail(e) (see aisle ) + -eron dim. suffix
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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ai·le·ron   (ā'lə-rŏn')   


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n.  Either of two movable flaps on the wings of an airplane that can be used to control the plane's rolling and banking movements.

[French, diminutive of aile, wing, from Old French, from Latin āla.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

aileron 
1909, from Fr. aileron, altered (by influence of aile "wing"), from O.Fr. aleron, dim. of ele "wing," from L. ala "wing."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia

aileron

movable part of an airplane wing that is controlled by the pilot and permits him to roll the aircraft around its longitudinal axis. Ailerons are thus used primarily to bank the aircraft for turning. Ailerons have taken different forms through the years but are usually part of the wing's trailing edge, near the tip. Their efficiency in lateral control made obsolete the Wright brothers' system of wing warping.

Learn more about aileron with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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