ˈaerofoil
[f. aero- b + foil n.1]
A wing, aileron, tailplane or other lifting surface of an aircraft; any surface designed on similar principles; also attrib., and applied to a type of ship's propeller (see quot. 1948).
| 1907 F. W. Lanchester Aerodynamics v. 179 The author does not employ the term aeroplane outside its correct signification, that is to say, to denote other than a true or plane aeroplane; the misuse of the word being avoided by the introduction of the word aerofoil, to denote a supporting member, or organ of sustentation of undefined form. 1914 Aeronaut. Jrnl. XVIII. 315 Aerofoil, a structure, analogous to the wing or tail of a bird, designed to obtain a reaction from the air approximately at right angles to the direction of its motion. 1920 Conquest I. 437/1 The effects of air-flow upon various aerofoil surfaces. 1931 Discovery May 147/2 The general use of what is now known as ‘aerofoil’ blade propellers. 1948 R. de Kerchove Internat. Maritime Dict. (1958) 5/1 Aerofoil propeller, a propeller designed in accord with aerodynamic principles based on the circulation theory instead of as a true screw... The margin of efficiency of the aerofoil propeller over the true screw is about 10 to 12%. 1950 Engineering 24 Mar. 333/3 The propellers [of a launch] are of the standard..type in which vertical aerofoil-section blades are fitted. 1959 Chamber's Encycl. XIV. 612/1 In 1923 aerofoils were first fitted to the leading edges of normal windmill sails by Dekker in the Netherlands. 1961 Spectator 14 July 53 Part of the aerofoil lift develops as the forward speed on the cushion increases. |