dirigible

[ dir-i-juh-buhl, dih-rij-uh- ]

noun

1. an airship.

adjective

1. designed for or capable of being directed, controlled, or steered.

dirigible

/ dɪˈrɪdʒɪbəl /

adjective

1. able to be steered or directed

noun

1. another name for airship

Derived Forms

• ˌdirigiˈbility, noun

Other Words From

• dir·i·gi·bil·i·ty noun
• non·dir·i·gi·bili·ty noun
• non·dir·i·gi·ble adjective noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of dirigible¹

First recorded in 1580–90 for the adjective and in 1885–90 for the noun; from Latin dīrigere, dēregere “to arrange, align, straighten, direct” + English adjective suffix -ible; direct, -ible

Word History and Origins

Origin of dirigible¹

C16: from Latin dīrigere to direct

Example Sentences

“Let’s Fly” exhibition, are striped, spotted, shaped like doughnuts and light up in the night sky like condensed, dirigible versions of Ugo Rondinone’s “Seven Magic Mountains” sculpture.

From Los Angeles Times

In 1915, Germany’s lighter-than-air dirigible balloons, called Zeppelins after their designer, Count Ferdinand Zeppelin, began nighttime bombing raids over southern England, causing widespread panic and killing or wounding several thousand people.

From Literature

In August 1929, Angelenos swarmed the site to gawk at the Graf Zeppelin dirigible stopping by on its world tour.

From Los Angeles Times

I suspect some Chinese dirigible navigators have tumbled to a hard political landing.

From Washington Post

In a nod to the need for a military component, he suggested images of vessels, not people—a dirigible, a battleship and a submarine named Los Angeles.

From Los Angeles Times