Library / English Dictionary

PILOT

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

An inclined metal frame at the front of a locomotive to clear the track

Synonyms:

buffer; cowcatcher; fender; pilot

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("pilot" is a kind of...):

frame; framework (a structure supporting or containing something)

Holonyms ("pilot" is a part of...):

engine; locomotive; locomotive engine; railway locomotive (a wheeled vehicle consisting of a self-propelled engine that is used to draw trains along railway tracks)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Small auxiliary gas burner that provides a flame to ignite a larger gas burner

Synonyms:

pilot; pilot burner; pilot light

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("pilot" is a kind of...):

gas burner; gas jet (burner such that combustible gas issues from a nozzle to form a steady flame)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Something that serves as a model or a basis for making copies

Example:

this painting is a copy of the original

Synonyms:

archetype; original; pilot

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("pilot" is a kind of...):

example; model (a representative form or pattern)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A program exemplifying a contemplated series; intended to attract sponsors

Synonyms:

pilot; pilot film; pilot program

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("pilot" is a kind of...):

television program; television show; TV program; TV show (a program broadcast by television)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Someone who is licensed to operate an aircraft in flight

Synonyms:

airplane pilot; pilot

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("pilot" is a kind of...):

aeronaut; airman; aviator; flier; flyer (someone who operates an aircraft)

Domain category:

aircraft (a vehicle that can fly)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pilot"):

barnstormer; stunt flier; stunt pilot (a pilot who travels around the country giving exhibits of stunt flying and parachuting)

captain; senior pilot (the pilot in charge of an airship)

combat pilot (airplane pilot who fights in an action between two military forces)

co-pilot; copilot (a relief pilot on an airplane)

kamikaze (a pilot trained and willing to cause a suicidal crash)

test pilot (a pilot hired to fly experimental airplanes through maneuvers designed to test them)

wingman (the pilot who positions his aircraft outside and behind (on the wing of) the leader of a flying formation)

Derivation:

pilot (operate an airplane)

Sense 6

Meaning:

A person qualified to guide ships through difficult waters going into or out of a harbor

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("pilot" is a kind of...):

gob; Jack; Jack-tar; mariner; old salt; sea dog; seafarer; seaman; tar (a man who serves as a sailor)

Derivation:

pilot (act as the navigator in a car, plane, or vessel and plan, direct, plot the path and position of the conveyance)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Act as the navigator in a car, plane, or vessel and plan, direct, plot the path and position of the conveyance

Example:

Who was navigating the ship during the accident?

Synonyms:

navigate; pilot

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "pilot" is one way to...):

channelise; channelize; direct; guide; head; maneuver; manoeuver; manoeuvre; point; steer (direct the course; determine the direction of travelling)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "pilot"):

astrogate (guide in interplanetary travel)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

pilot (a person qualified to guide ships through difficult waters going into or out of a harbor)

pilotage (the occupation of a pilot)

pilotage (the guidance of ships or airplanes from place to place)

piloting (the occupation of a pilot)

piloting (the guidance of ships or airplanes from place to place)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Operate an airplane

Example:

The pilot flew to Cuba

Synonyms:

aviate; fly; pilot

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "pilot" is one way to...):

control; operate (handle and cause to function)

"Pilot" entails doing...:

fly; wing (travel through the air; be airborne)

Verb group:

fly (travel over (an area of land or sea) in an aircraft)

fly (travel in an airplane)

fly (transport by aeroplane)

Domain category:

aircraft (a vehicle that can fly)

air; air travel; aviation (travel via aircraft)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "pilot"):

hang glide; soar (fly by means of a hang glider)

flat-hat; hedgehop (fly very close to the ground)

balloon (ride in a hot-air balloon)

hydroplane; seaplane (glide on the water in a hydroplane)

glide (fly in or as if in a glider plane)

jet (fly a jet plane)

test fly (test a plane)

solo (fly alone, without a co-pilot or passengers)

fly contact (fly a plane by using visible landmarks or points of reference)

fly blind (fly an airplane solely by relying on instruments)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

pilot (someone who is licensed to operate an aircraft in flight)

pilotage (the occupation of a pilot)

pilotage (the guidance of ships or airplanes from place to place)

piloting (the occupation of a pilot)

piloting (the guidance of ships or airplanes from place to place)

Credits

 Context examples: 

Pilots flying at high altitude, for instance, may experience vision impairment if planes fail to supplement cockpits with additional oxygen.

(Low ocean oxygen levels can blind sea creatures, National Science Foundation)

Similar to Phased Innovation Award, created to support the pilot application of instrumentation, techniques and analytic tools relevant to research on the molecular biology of cancer.

(Phased Technology Application Award, NCI Thesaurus)

A two-way valve designed to control the pressure in an endotracheal tube cuff as introduced through a pilot balloon.

(Pilot Balloon Valve Device Component, NCI Thesaurus)

On July 25, which was the 110th anniversary of the first plane flight across the Channel by pilot Louis Blériot, Zapata fell into the water after a low-speed collision with the resupply boat.

(French inventor Franky Zapata successfully crosses English Channel on jet-powered hoverboard, Wikinews)

While pilots rely on radio signals, advanced computations and other tools to keep them on course during strong crosswinds, birds can naturally navigate these demanding conditions — in environments with little visibility.

(Scientists discover how birds navigate crosswinds, National Science Foundation)

We cast anchor within a league of the town, and made a signal for a pilot.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

He had always been irreligious, scoffing good-naturedly at the sky-pilots and their immortality of the soul.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

Although further investigation will be needed to confirm the results of the pilot study, the findings could help open a new area of research aimed at understanding the potential connection between poor sleep and the memory declines associated with aging.

(Study ties poor sleep to reduced memory performance in older adults, National Science Foundation)

The Biostatistics Shared Resource works with Cancer Center investigators to define study/protocol objectives and endpoints, analyze pilot data, select an appropriate study design, blinding methods and randomization scheme, plan interim analyses, define an adequate sample size and accrual rate, develop and evaluate the statistical methods and analyse data, prepare statistical sections of the grant and protocol applications, analyze and design relational databases, forms and reports.

(Biostatistics Shared Resource, NCI Thesaurus)

As he spoke there was a tap at the door, and the boy in buttons entered to announce Miss Mary Sutherland, while the lady herself loomed behind his small black figure like a full-sailed merchant-man behind a tiny pilot boat.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)