launch vehicle

noun

: a rocket used to launch a satellite or spacecraft

Examples of launch vehicle in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Starship is SpaceX's two-stage, fully reusable, super heavy-lift launch vehicle. —

Garth Friesen, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024 SpaceX has spent years developing and testing the 400-foot Starship, which is classified as a super heavy-lift launch vehicle and is lauded as the biggest and most powerful rocket ever built. —

Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 19 Nov. 2024 But experts say the photos show the ICBM and its launch vehicle are oversized, raising a serious question about their wartime mobility and survivability. —

Hyung-Jin Kim and Kim Tong-Hyung The Associated Press, arkansasonline.com, 2 Nov. 2024 Yet analysts note that both the missile and its launch vehicle appear oversized, raising concerns about their mobility and survivability in wartime scenarios. —

Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 1 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for launch vehicle

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1960, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of launch vehicle was circa 1960

See more words from the same year

Cite this Entry

Style

“Launch vehicle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/launch%20vehicle. Accessed 17 Dec. 2024.

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