test pilot

noun

: a pilot who specializes in putting new or experimental airplanes through maneuvers designed to test them (as for strength) by producing strains in excess of normal

Examples of test pilot in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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One of my test pilot school classmates, Josh Kutryk, was selected to the Canadian astronaut program. Jim Clash, Forbes, 22 Dec. 2024 The movie starred Matthew McConaughey as Cooper, a former NASA test pilot living as a farmer on a futuristic Earth where life is increasingly threatened due to global famine in the 2060s. Tommy McArdle, People.com, 6 Dec. 2024 But once a test pilot is done with his job, everyone else who flies that plane doesn’t have to worry. J. George Gorant, Robb Report, 5 Dec. 2024 Notably, the two test pilots for the inaugural crewed flight of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft — NASA’s Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore — were once again left behind for the simple reason that they were not assigned to that specific spacecraft. Alexandra Banner, CNN, 25 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for test pilot 

Word History

First Known Use

1917, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of test pilot was in 1917

Dictionary Entries Near test pilot

Cite this Entry

“Test pilot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/test%20pilot. Accessed 27 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

test pilot

noun
: a pilot who puts new aircraft through tests

More from Merriam-Webster on test pilot

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