hydroplane

Meanings

Plural: hydroplanes

Noun

• an airplane that can land on or take off from water
  • "the designer of marine aircraft demonstrated his newest hydroplane"
• a speedboat that is equipped with winglike structures that lift it so that it skims the water at high speeds
  • "the museum houses a replica of the jet hydroplane that broke the record"
• A specific type of motorboat used exclusively for racing.
• A seaplane; any aircraft capable of taking off from, and alighting on the surface of water.
• A hydrofoil (“boat type”)
• A hydrofoil (“hydrodynamic surface”)
• The wing of a submarine, used to help control depth

Verb

• glide on the water in a hydroplane
• To skim the surface of a body of water while moving at high speed.
• For a car or similar vehicle to slide along the road on a thin film of water between the road and the tyres. This occurs when a car has some speed and comes to somewhere with more water on the road than the weight of the car and the grooves in the tyre tread pattern (if any) can push away. The result is almost no traction at all for steering or braking.

Synonyms

aquaplane, hydrofoil, seaplane