launch vehicle

American

noun

Aerospace. a rocket used to launch a spacecraft or satellite into orbit or a space probe into space.

launch vehicle British

noun

a rocket, without its payload, used to launch a spacecraft
another name for booster

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of launch vehicle

First recorded in 1955–1960

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Since the U.S. struck Iran’s three Iranian nuclear sites last summer, experts say, Iran has conducted tests of a space launch vehicle, one of which appears to have malfunctioned.

From The Wall Street Journal

Investors will also want an update on Neutron, Rocket Lab’s larger launch vehicle that could have its first flight in mid-2026.

From Barron's

“In the event of a debris-generating space launch vehicle mishap, there is the potential for debris falling within an area,” the advisory said, again listing coordinates for two zones in the Gulf and Caribbean.

From Salon

New Shepard, Blue Origin's reusable sub-orbital launch vehicle, took off from the company's Texas launch pad at 14:15 GMT.

From BBC

Over the course of the decade, a series of space missions confirmed that the idea of having a launch vehicle that separated from the mother ship would, in fact, work.

From Literature

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023