autopilot

noun

au·​to·​pi·​lot ˈȯ-tō-ˌpī-lət How to pronounce autopilot (audio)
1
: a device for automatically steering ships, aircraft, and spacecraft
also : the automatic control provided by such a device
2
: automatic pilot sense 2

Examples of autopilot in a Sentence

an airplane equipped with an autopilot The plane was flying on autopilot.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Doctors learn that classic UTI symptoms mean a UTI until proven otherwise, so the standard protocol runs on autopilot, even when the antibiotics never actually fix anything. — Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 19 Oct. 2026 Nobody wrote a Time magazine cover about the awakening consciousness of the autopilot. — Stephen Messer, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026 During a flight from Moscow to Hong Kong in March, 1994, the pilot allowed his teen-age son to sit at the controls of the plane, and the boy unknowingly disengaged the autopilot. — Sudarsan Raghavan, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026 The autopilot remains available, and Boeing says pilots are trained to fly the aircraft safely without VNAV. — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 27 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for autopilot

Word History

Etymology

auto- + pilot entry 1, as shortening of automatic pilot

First Known Use

1917, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of autopilot was in 1917

Rhymes for autopilot

See All Rhymes for autopilot

Browse Nearby Words

autophytography
autopilot
autopistol
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Autopilot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/autopilot. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on autopilot

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about autopilot

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