Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun The tail assembly of an aircraft, including the horizontal and vertical stabilizers, elevators, and rudder.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun The
tail assembly of anaircraft . - noun The
feathers of anarrow or thetail fins of abomb orrocket used tostabilize thelongitudinal axis of theprojectile parallel to theflight path .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun the rear part of an aircraft
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word empennage.
Examples
-
As I neared the giant empennage, I glanced to my left at the last second.
A Nightmare’s Prayer Michael Franzak 2010
-
Yet it is a sleek affair, with wings that are large relative to its fuselage and a tail section or empennage that sticks out behind in two sections, carrying stabilizers angled vertically in a V.
The Nature of Technology W. Brain Arthur 2009
-
He pushes them in sequence, checking and rechecking each step and feeling the change in the tail structure as the twin-boomed empennage begins to rise to a nearly eighty-degree upward deflection.
Orbit John J. Nance 2006
-
He pushes them in sequence, checking and rechecking each step and feeling the change in the tail structure as the twin-boomed empennage begins to rise to a nearly eighty-degree upward deflection.
Orbit John J. Nance 2006
-
No marks of wing or empennage, or engine impact anywhere, not to mention a paucity of wreckage, bodies and etc.
-
She moved gingerly, trying to get her bearings, and realized she was sitting on the rear empennage of the ship.
Mosaic Jeri Taylor 1996
-
She moved gingerly, trying to get her bearings, and realized she was sitting on the rear empennage of the ship.
Star Trek Voyager Mosaic Jeri Taylor 1996
-
She moved gingerly, trying to get her bearings, and realized she was sitting on the rear empennage of the ship.
Star Trek Voyager Mosaic Jeri Taylor 1996
-
If the hook can be strengthened, especially where it joins the empennage, I believe the plane will give a good account of itself.
Space Michener, James 1982
-
A few seconds before, Larry had recognized what it was: a piece from the empennage.
Division 3 Mahr, Kurt 1976
qms commented on the word empennage
Aunt Mildred affected a bustle
So haste was a terrible tussle.
She needed a nudge
In the empennage
Whenever required to hustle.
November 4, 2015