ballonet

[ bal-uh-ney ]

noun

1. an air or gasbag compartment in a balloon or airship, used to control buoyancy and maintain shape.

ballonet

/ ˌbæləˈnɛt /

noun

1. an air or gas compartment in a balloon or nonrigid airship, used to control buoyancy and shape

Word History and Origins

Origin of ballonet¹

From French, dating back to 1900–05; balloon, -et

Word History and Origins

Origin of ballonet¹

C20: from French ballonnet a little balloon

Example Sentences

The envelope is a rigid one of aluminium, subdivided into forty-nine compartments, each of which contains a flexible ballonet.

From Project Gutenberg

Each ballonet is theoretically proof against leakage--in practice there is an almost inappreciable porosity, which hardly counts for a comparatively short period, say a month.

From Project Gutenberg

During the rest of the night the crew worked with a will--patching, mending, and "doping" the holed fabric and carefully testing each repaired ballonet with compressed air before refilling it with the precious brodium.

From Project Gutenberg

The buckling of the aluminium envelope resulted in ballonet after ballonet collapsing under the pressure of water.

From Project Gutenberg

This class rise with the forward ballonet empty, and inclined up by the bow.

From Project Gutenberg