1
a
: a pit or enclosure for cockfights
b
: a place noted for especially bloody, violent, or long-continued conflict
2
obsolete
: the pit of a theater
3
: a compartment in a sailing warship used as quarters for junior officers and for treatment of the wounded in an engagement
4
: a space or compartment in a usually small vehicle (such as a boat, airplane, or automobile) from which it is steered, piloted, or driven see airplane illustration
Examples of cockpit in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Blaming doctors when technology flops is like blaming pilots when the cockpit software crashes.
—
Jeffrey Wessler, Forbes.com, 29 July 2025
More Main: Gene J. Puskar, Inset: Aaron M. Sprecher via AP/AP Photo
What to Know
Passengers began to disembark as normal, before officers boarded the flight, entered the cockpit, and arrested one of the pilots.
—Sophie Clark, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 July 2025
Alarms sounded in the cockpit of a Southwest Airlines jet shortly after taking off from Hollywood Burbank airport near Los Angeles on Friday, prompting evasive maneuvers, the airline said in a statement.
—Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 25 July 2025
The mako slid into the cockpit and promptly took over.
—Pat Smith, Outdoor Life, 24 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for cockpit
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Jeffrey Wessler, Forbes.com, 29 July 2025
More Main: Gene J. Puskar, Inset: Aaron M. Sprecher via AP/AP Photo
What to Know
Passengers began to disembark as normal, before officers boarded the flight, entered the cockpit, and arrested one of the pilots.
—Sophie Clark, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 July 2025
Alarms sounded in the cockpit of a Southwest Airlines jet shortly after taking off from Hollywood Burbank airport near Los Angeles on Friday, prompting evasive maneuvers, the airline said in a statement.
—Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 25 July 2025
The mako slid into the cockpit and promptly took over.
—Pat Smith, Outdoor Life, 24 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for cockpit
Cite this Entry
“Cockpit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cockpit. Accessed 7 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
cockpit
noun
cock·pit
ˈkäk-ˌpit 
: a space or compartment in a usually small vehicle (as a boat, airplane, or automobile) from which it is steered, piloted, or driven
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