pilot

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pi·lot

(pī′lət)

1. One who operates or is licensed to operate an aircraft in flight.

2. Nautical

a. One who, though not belonging to a ship's company, is licensed to conduct a ship into and out of port or through dangerous waters.

b. The helmsman of a ship.

3. One who guides or directs a course of action for others.

4. The part of a tool, device, or machine that leads or guides the whole.

5. A pilot light, as in a stove.

6. A television program produced as a prototype of a series being considered for adoption by a network.

tr.v. pi·lot·ed, pi·lot·ing, pi·lots

1. To serve as the pilot of (a plane, for example).

2. To steer or control the course of: piloted the visitors around the city. See Synonyms at guide.

adj.

1. Serving as a tentative model for future experiment or development: a pilot project.

2. Serving or leading as guide.

[Obsolete French, helmsman, from Old French, from Old Italian pilota, alteration of pedota, from Medieval Greek *pēdōtēs, from Greek pēda, steering oar, pl. of pēdon, blade of an oar; see ped- in Indo-European roots.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

pilot

(ˈpaɪlət)

1. (Aeronautics)

a. a person who is qualified to operate an aircraft or spacecraft in flight

b. (as modifier): pilot error.

2. (Navigation)

a. a person who is qualified to steer or guide a ship into or out of a port, river mouth, etc

b. (as modifier): a pilot ship.

3. (Navigation) a person who steers a ship

4. a person who acts as a leader or guide

5. (Mechanical Engineering) machinery a guide, often consisting of a tongue or dowel, used to assist in joining two mating parts together

6. (Tools) machinery a plug gauge for measuring an internal diameter

7. (Film) films a colour test strip accompanying black-and-white rushes from colour originals

8. (Broadcasting) an experimental programme on radio or television

9. (Broadcasting) See pilot film

10. (modifier) used in or serving as a test or trial: a pilot project.

11. (modifier) serving as a guide: a pilot beacon.

vb (tr)

12. to act as pilot of

13. to control the course of

14. to guide or lead (a project, people, etc)

[C16: from French pilote, from Medieval Latin pilotus, ultimately from Greek pēdon oar; related to Greek pous foot]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

pi•lot

(ˈpaɪ lət)

n.

1. a person qualified to operate an airplane, balloon, or other aircraft.

2. a person qualified to steer ships into or out of a harbor or through certain difficult waters.

3. a person who steers a ship.

4. a guide or leader.

5. pilot light (def. 1).

6. a guide for positioning two adjacent machine parts, often consisting of a projection on one part fitting into a recess in the other.

7. a filmed or taped television program serving to introduce a possible new series.

8. a preliminary or experimental trial or test.

v.t.

9. to act as pilot on, in, or over.

10. to lead or guide, as through unknown places or intricate affairs.

11. to steer.

adj.

12. serving as a guide.

13. serving as an experimental or trial undertaking prior to full-scale operation or use: a pilot project.

[1520–30; earlier pylotte < Middle French pillotte < Italian pilota, dissimilated variant of pedota < Medieval Greek *pēdṓtēs steersman = Greek pēd(á) rudder (pl. of pēdón oar) + -ōtēs agent suffix]

pilot

Past participle: piloted
Gerund: piloting

Imperative
pilot
pilot

Present
I pilot
you pilot
he/she/it pilots
we pilot
you pilot
they pilot

Preterite
I piloted
you piloted
he/she/it piloted
we piloted
you piloted
they piloted

Present Continuous
I am piloting
you are piloting
he/she/it is piloting
we are piloting
you are piloting
they are piloting

Present Perfect
I have piloted
you have piloted
he/she/it has piloted
we have piloted
you have piloted
they have piloted

Past Continuous
I was piloting
you were piloting
he/she/it was piloting
we were piloting
you were piloting
they were piloting

Past Perfect
I had piloted
you had piloted
he/she/it had piloted
we had piloted
you had piloted
they had piloted

Future
I will pilot
you will pilot
he/she/it will pilot
we will pilot
you will pilot
they will pilot

Future Perfect
I will have piloted
you will have piloted
he/she/it will have piloted
we will have piloted
you will have piloted
they will have piloted

Future Continuous
I will be piloting
you will be piloting
he/she/it will be piloting
we will be piloting
you will be piloting
they will be piloting

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been piloting
you have been piloting
he/she/it has been piloting
we have been piloting
you have been piloting
they have been piloting

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been piloting
you will have been piloting
he/she/it will have been piloting
we will have been piloting
you will have been piloting
they will have been piloting

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been piloting
you had been piloting
he/she/it had been piloting
we had been piloting
you had been piloting
they had been piloting

Conditional
I would pilot
you would pilot
he/she/it would pilot
we would pilot
you would pilot
they would pilot

Past Conditional
I would have piloted
you would have piloted
he/she/it would have piloted
we would have piloted
you would have piloted
they would have piloted

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun	1.	pilot - someone who is licensed to operate an aircraft in flight airplane pilot aircraft - a vehicle that can fly aeronaut, airman, aviator, flier, flyer - someone who operates an aircraft stunt flier, stunt pilot, barnstormer - a pilot who travels around the country giving exhibits of stunt flying and parachuting senior pilot, captain - the pilot in charge of an airship combat pilot - airplane pilot who fights in an action between two military forces copilot, co-pilot - a relief pilot on an airplane kamikaze - a pilot trained and willing to cause a suicidal crash test pilot - a pilot hired to fly experimental airplanes through maneuvers designed to test them wingman - the pilot who positions his aircraft outside and behind (on the wing of) the leader of a flying formation
	2.	pilot - a person qualified to guide ships through difficult waters going into or out of a harbor Jack-tar, mariner, old salt, sea dog, seafarer, seaman, gob, Jack, tar - a man who serves as a sailor
	3.	pilot - a program exemplifying a contemplated series; intended to attract sponsors pilot film, pilot program television program, television show, TV program, TV show - a program broadcast by television
	4.	pilot - something that serves as a model or a basis for making copies; "this painting is a copy of the original" archetype, original example, model - a representative form or pattern; "I profited from his example"
	5.	pilot - small auxiliary gas burner that provides a flame to ignite a larger gas burner pilot burner, pilot light gas burner, gas jet - burner such that combustible gas issues from a nozzle to form a steady flame
	6.	pilot - an inclined metal frame at the front of a locomotive to clear the track cowcatcher, fender, buffer framework - a structure supporting or containing something locomotive, locomotive engine, railway locomotive, engine - a wheeled vehicle consisting of a self-propelled engine that is used to draw trains along railway tracks
Verb	1.	pilot - operate an airplane; "The pilot flew to Cuba" aviate, fly air travel, aviation, air - travel via aircraft; "air travel involves too much waiting in airports"; "if you've time to spare go by air" aircraft - a vehicle that can fly control, operate - handle and cause to function; "do not operate machinery after imbibing alcohol"; "control the lever" fly - transport by aeroplane; "We fly flowers from the Caribbean to North America" fly - travel in an airplane; "she is flying to Cincinnati tonight"; "Are we driving or flying?" fly - travel over (an area of land or sea) in an aircraft; "Lindbergh was the first to fly the Atlantic" fly blind - fly an airplane solely by relying on instruments fly contact - fly a plane by using visible landmarks or points of reference solo - fly alone, without a co-pilot or passengers test fly - test a plane jet - fly a jet plane glide - fly in or as if in a glider plane hydroplane, seaplane - glide on the water in a hydroplane balloon - ride in a hot-air balloon; "He tried to balloon around the earth but storms forced him to land in China" flat-hat, hedgehop - fly very close to the ground hang glide, soar - fly by means of a hang glider
	2.	pilot - act as the navigator in a car, plane, or vessel and plan, direct, plot the path and position of the conveyance; "Is anyone volunteering to navigate during the trip?"; "Who was navigating the ship during the accident?" navigate channelise, channelize, guide, maneuver, steer, manoeuver, manoeuvre, point, head, direct - direct the course; determine the direction of travelling astrogate - guide in interplanetary travel

pilot

noun

1. airman, captain, flyer, aviator, aeronaut He spent seventeen years as an airline pilot.

2. helmsman, guide, navigator, leader, director, conductor, coxswain, steersman The pilot steered the ship safely inside the main channel.

verb

1. fly, control, operate, be at the controls of the first person to pilot an aircraft across the Pacific

2. navigate, drive, manage, direct, guide, handle, conduct, steer Local fishermen piloted the boats.

3. direct, lead, manage, conduct, steer We are piloting the strategy through Parliament.

adjective

1. trial, test, model, sample, experimental a pilot show for a new TV series

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

pilot

noun

Something or someone that shows the way:

conductor, director, escort, guide, lead, leader, shepherd, usher.

verb

1. To run and control (a motor vehicle):

drive, motor, wheel.

Slang: tool.

2. To direct the course of carefully:

guide, jockey, maneuver, navigate, steer.

Idiom: back and fill.

3. To show the way to:

conduct, direct, escort, guide, lead, route, shepherd, show, steer, usher.

adjective

Constituting a tentative model for future experiment or development:

experimental, test, trial.

Translations

طَيّارطيَّارمُرْشِد السَّفينَهمَشْروع تَجْريبييُرْشِد، يَقودُ الطّائِره أو السَّفينَه

летец

pilotpilotovatpokusnýzkušebnílodivod

pilotflyvelodslodsenavigere

Lotse Pilot lotsen Flieger führen

πιλότος πιλοτικός

piloto práctico arrumbar experimental guiar

piloot

lentäjäluotsataluotsiohjata

pilote piloter essayer

pilot

pilótarévkalauz

flugmaîurhafnsögumaîur, lóîsstÿra, fljúga; lóîsatilrauna-, prufu-

pilota pilotare sperimentale volare di prova

パイロット

조종사

locmanasnuolatinė liepsnelėpilotaspilotuoti

eksperimentālsizmēģinājuma-lidotājslocispilotēt

loods piloot

los pilot pilot-flyger

pilot

piloto ensaiar

пилот лётчик лоцман пилотный штурман

lodivodpilotpilotovať

pilot

pilotlots

นักบิน

pilotpilotluk yapmakdeneyselkaptan kullanmak

phi công

试验性的领航领航员飞机驾驶员飞行员

pilot

[ˈpaɪlət]

A. N

1. (Aer) → piloto mf
see also airline B
see also automatic C
see also fighter B
see also test D

2. (Naut) → práctico mf, piloto mf

3. = pilot light

4. = pilot programme

B. VT

1. (Aer, Naut) → pilotar, pilotear (esp LAm)

2. (fig) (= guide) → conducir; (= test) [+ scheme] → poner a prueba
he piloted the negotiations through → condujo las negociaciones a buen fin
to pilot a bill through the House → asegurar la aprobación de un proyecto de ley

C. CPD [project, scheme] → piloto inv, experimental
pilot boat N → barco m del práctico
pilot episode N (TV) → episodio m piloto
pilot error N the airline blamed pilot error for the crash → la compañía achacó el accidente a un error del piloto
pilot fish N → pez m piloto
pilot house N (Naut) → timonera f
pilot's licence N → licencia f de piloto
pilot light N → piloto m
pilot officer N → oficial m piloto
pilot plant N (Ind) → planta f de prueba, planta f piloto
pilot programme N (TV) → programa m piloto
pilot study N → estudio m piloto
pilot whale N → calderón m negro

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

pilot

[ˈpaɪlət]

[aircraft, ship] → pilote m/f
He's a pilot → Il est pilote.

(also pilot episode) (= programme) → épisode m pilote

(also pilot light) → veilleuse f (de cuisinière, de chauffe-eau)

modif

[error] → de pilotage; [training] → au pilotage

[project, programme, school] → pilote

[+ aircraft, ship] → piloter

[+ scheme, programme] → piloter

to pilot sth through Parliament [+ bill, strategy, new law] → faire passer qch au parlementpilot boat n → bateau-pilote mpilot light n → veilleuse f (de cuisinière, de chauffe-eau)pilot scheme n → projet m pilotepilot study n → étude f pilote

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

pilot

(Aviat) → Pilot(in) m(f), → Flugzeugführer(in) m(f); pilot’s licence → Flugschein m, → Flugzeugführererlaubnis f (form)

(Naut) → Lotse m, → Lotsin f

(= pilot light) → Zündflamme f

(US: on train) → Schienenräumer m

(TV) pilot (episode) → Pilotfilm m

vt plane → führen, fliegen; ship → lotsen; (fig) → führen, leiten

pilot

pilot beam

n (Tech) → Leitstrahl f

pilot boat

n → Lotsenboot nt

pilot experiment

n (Tech, Sci) → Pilotversuch m, → Modellversuch m

pilot fish

n → Lotsen- or Pilotfisch m

pilot flag

n → Lotsenrufflagge f

pilot house

n → Ruderhaus nt, → Steuerhaus nt

pilot lamp

n → Kontrolllampe f

pilotless

adj → führerlos

pilot light

n → Zündflamme f; (for monitoring) → Kontrolllampe f

pilot officer

n (Brit Aviat) → Leutnant m

pilot plant

(= experimental plant) → Pilot-/Versuchsanlage f

(= model company) → Musterbetrieb m

pilot scheme

n → Pilotprojekt nt

pilot study

n → Pilotstudie f, → Musterstudie f

pilot test

n (Tech, Sci) → Pilotversuch m, → Modellversuch m

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

pilot

[ˈpaɪlət]

1. n (Aer, Naut) → pilota m/f

2. vt (Aer, Naut) → pilotare (fig) (guide) → guidare, dirigere

3. adj (scheme) → pilota inv

pilot

(ˈpailət) noun

1. a person who flies an aeroplane. The pilot and crew were all killed in the air crash.

2. a person who directs a ship in and out of a harbour, river, or coastal waters.

adjective

experimental. a pilot scheme (= one done on a small scale, eg to solve certain problems before a larger, more expensive project is started).

verb

to guide as a pilot. He piloted the ship/plane.

ˈpilot-light noun

a small gas light eg on a gas cooker, which burns continuously and is used to light the main gas jets when they are turned on.

pilot

→ طيَّار pilot pilot Pilot πιλότος piloto lentäjä pilote pilot pilota パイロット 조종사 piloot flyger pilot piloto пилот pilot นักบิน pilot phi công 飞行员

References in classic literature ?

Tarzan realized that only through a miracle of chance could they reach Usanga and effect the change in pilots and yet he knew that that chance must be taken, for in the brief moments since he had first seen the plane, he had realized that the black was almost without experience as a pilot and that death surely awaited them in any event should the black sergeant remain at the control.

View in context

And nothing remains but lingering perhaps in the memory of a few men, the sound of their names, vanished a long time ago from the first page of the great London dailies; from big posters in railway-stations and the doors of shipping offices; from the minds of sailors, dockmasters, pilots, and tugmen; from the hail of gruff voices and the flutter of signal flags exchanged between ships closing upon each other and drawing apart in the open immensity of the sea.

View in context

Some of our sailors, whether out of treachery or inadvertence, had informed the pilots "that I was a stranger, and great traveller;" whereof these gave notice to a custom-house officer, by whom I was examined very strictly upon my landing.

View in context

The pilot went on board at six, and took his place on the bridge, to guide the Rangoon through the channels to the port of Hong Kong.

View in context

But soon I heard the dash of oars; I heard the Pilot's cheer; My head was turned perforce away, And I saw a boat appear.

View in context

A fresh breeze was blowing, and for a time I was alone in the moist obscurity--yet not alone, for I was dimly conscious of the presence of the pilot, and of what I took to be the captain, in the glass house above my head.

View in context

The pilot grunted, while the skipper swept on with his glass from the launch to the strip of beach and to Kingston beyond, and then slowly across the entrance to Howth Head on the northern side.

View in context

Captain Nemo led me towards the central staircase; half way down he opened a door, traversed the upper deck, and landed in the pilot's cage, which it may be remembered rose at the extremity of the platform.

View in context

Though it come to the last, I shall still go before thee thy pilot. And when thou art so gone before --if that ever befall --then ere I can follow, thou must still appear to me, to pilot me still?

View in context

The greater weight the anxieties and perplexities of these things were to our thoughts while we were at sea, the greater was our satisfaction when we saw ourselves on shore; and my partner told me he dreamed that he had a very heavy load upon his back, which he was to carry up a hill, and found that he was not able to stand longer under it; but that the Portuguese pilot came and took it off his back, and the hill disappeared, the ground before him appearing all smooth and plain: and truly it was so; they were all like men who had a load taken off their backs.

View in context

The boat was about to set off when De Guiche called to the pilot. "Stay," said he: "we want two places in your boat;" and wrapping five or six pistoles in paper, he threw them from the quay into the boat.

View in context

As usual, a pilot put off immediately, and rounding the Chateau d'If, got on board the vessel between Cape Morgion and Rion island.