see usage paragraph below
: carrying, staffed, or performed by one or more people
a manned security booth
manned spaceflight
a manned mission
Usage of Manned and Unmanned
While manned and unmanned are still commonly used in news sources to describe spaceflights with and without human crews, respectively, NASA has since the early 21st century used and prescribed non-gender-specific terms, preferring such descriptors as human, piloted, and crewed for the former, and unpiloted and uncrewed for the latter.
Examples of manned in a Sentence
a manned mission to the moon
Recent Examples on the Web
China is moving ahead with its goal of a manned lunar landing before the end of the decade while planning new missions to its Tiangong space station this year.
—
Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 7 Mar. 2025
Thus qualified for manned space flight, the Speedy accompanied astronauts Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins, and Neil Armstrong on the Apollo 11 mission, where Aldrin wore his ref.
—Allen Farmelo, Robb Report, 26 Dec. 2024
What To Know The Taiwanese Defense Ministry announced that the Chinese military deployed a total of 59 manned and unmanned aircraft plus nine naval vessels around the island in the 24 hours to 6 a.m. on Tuesday, in addition to at least two balloons.
—Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 19 Mar. 2025
Moreover, the Russian military uses similar Kometa systems on other platforms, including manned aircraft, drones, and ground vehicles.
—Vikram Mittal, Forbes, 18 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for manned
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Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 7 Mar. 2025
Thus qualified for manned space flight, the Speedy accompanied astronauts Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins, and Neil Armstrong on the Apollo 11 mission, where Aldrin wore his ref.
—Allen Farmelo, Robb Report, 26 Dec. 2024
What To Know The Taiwanese Defense Ministry announced that the Chinese military deployed a total of 59 manned and unmanned aircraft plus nine naval vessels around the island in the 24 hours to 6 a.m. on Tuesday, in addition to at least two balloons.
—Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 19 Mar. 2025
Moreover, the Russian military uses similar Kometa systems on other platforms, including manned aircraft, drones, and ground vehicles.
—Vikram Mittal, Forbes, 18 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for manned
Cite this Entry
“Manned.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/manned. Accessed 29 Apr. 2025.
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manned
adjective
: carrying or performed by a person
manned spaceflight
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