dirigible
/'diridʤəbl/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Adjective:
- Capable of being steered or directed: Describes something that can be guided or controlled in its course or direction.
Noun:
- A steerable self-propelled aircraft: Specifically refers to a type of lighter-than-air aircraft, an airship, that can be navigated through the air under its own power.
Usage Examples
Adjective:
- The new prototype is a highly dirigible drone. (The new prototype is a drone that can be steered very well.)
- They argued whether the floating platform was truly dirigible in strong currents. (They argued whether the floating platform could actually be steered in strong currents.)
Noun:
- The giant dirigible floated silently over the city. (The giant airship floated silently over the city.)
- Early 20th-century dirigibles, like the Zeppelins, were used for passenger travel. (Early 20th-century airships, like the Zeppelins, were used for passenger travel.)
Advanced Usage
- The term is most commonly and specifically applied to lighter-than-air craft (airships). When used as an adjective for other objects, it is often technical or formal.
- The concept applies to any dirigible body in a fluid medium. (The concept applies to any body that can be steered in a fluid medium.)
Variants and Related Words
- Dirigibility (n): The quality or state of being steerable.
- The dirigibility of the vessel in stormy weather was impressive.
- Airships, blimps, and Zeppelins are all types of dirigibles.
Synonyms
- Adjective: Steerable, navigable, guidable, pilotable.
- Noun: Airship, blimp, Zeppelin (a brand name for a type of rigid airship).
Related Phrases
- Dirigible balloon: An older term synonymous with "airship" or "dirigible" (noun).
- The expedition used a dirigible balloon for Arctic exploration.
Adjective
- capable of being steered or directed
Noun
- a steerable self-propelled aircraft