Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A metal structure, such as an aircraft, in which the skin absorbs all or most of the stresses to which the body is subjected.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A structure design in which the frame and body are built as a single integrated structure.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[French : mono-, mono- + coque, shell (from Old French, from Latin coccum, berry, from Greek kokkos).]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

First attested in 1914: from the French monocoque.

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Examples

Comments

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  • "All of the fragile bits like electronics, battery pack and even the gas tank reside neatly inside the aircraft seamless, patent pending monocoque spar. - Ad for Pi X Electrobike, Dec 2007.

    December 7, 2007

  • "Did you know when applying to register a rebuilt Mini one must declare whether one's fucking chassis or monocoque body has been replaced or modified in any way?"

    The Chemistry of Tears by Peter Carey, p 85 of the Knopf hardcover edition

    June 5, 2012