copter

See also: 'copter

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

    Clipping of helicopter; see also -copter § Etymology.

    Pronunciation

    • (UK) IPA(key): /ˈkɒptə/
    • Audio (Southern England):(file)
    • (US) enPR: käpʹtər, IPA(key): /ˈkɑptɚ/

    Noun

    copter (plural copters)

    1. (informal) A helicopter.
      • 2005, Sin City (the film),
        Shellie shouts something I can't quite make out over the racket of a passing police copter.

    Synonyms

    Derived terms

    • -copter (and derivatives therefrom)
    • heli- (and derivatives therefrom)

    Translations

    Verb

    copter (third-person singular simple present copters, present participle coptering, simple past and past participle coptered)

    1. (informal, transitive) To helicopter: to transport by helicopter.
    2. (informal, intransitive) To helicopter: to travel by helicopter.
    3. (informal, intransitive) To move like a helicopter.
      • 2015 July 24, Tom Sleigh, “‘Boomerang’”, in New York Times[1]:
        The sidelong whiplash of his arm sent the boomerang soaring, pushing the sky to the horizon until the blade just hung there, a black slash on the sun so far away it seemed not to move at all before it came whirling back larger and larger: would it hit him, would he die — and you ducked down, terrified, clinging to his thigh, its deathspin slowing as it coptered softly down and he snatched it from the air.

    Anagrams