helicopter

[ hel-i-kop-ter, hee-li- ]
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noun
  1. any of a class of heavier-than-air craft that are lifted and sustained in the air horizontally by rotating wings or blades turning on vertical axes through power supplied by an engine.

verb (used without object)
  1. to fly in a helicopter.

verb (used with object)
  1. to convey in a helicopter.

Origin of helicopter

1
From the French word hélicoptère, dating back to 1885–90. See helico-, -pter

Words Nearby helicopter

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use helicopter in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for helicopter

helicopter

/ (ˈhɛlɪˌkɒptə) /


noun
  1. an aircraft capable of hover, vertical flight, and horizontal flight in any direction. Most get all of their lift and propulsion from the rotation of overhead blades: See also autogiro

verb
  1. to transport (people or things) or (of people or things) to be transported by helicopter

Origin of helicopter

1
C19: from French hélicoptère, from helico- + Greek pteron wing

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012