seaplane

US/ˈsiˌpleɪn/

nounB2+Rare in speech; mostly a word you read · #12,741 of 15,258mostly written

Other forms: seaplanes

A seaplane is an aircraft that lands on water instead of a runway. A seaplane base, land the seaplane, a seaplane taxi.

It mattered enormously before long runways existed, since every coast and lake was already an aerodrome, and it still serves places roads do not reach. A flying boat is a seaplane that lands on its hull, and a floatplane is one that lands on floats.

Definitions of seaplane

1nounseaplaneAn aircraft that lands on water instead of a runway.B2+
“A seaplane flew us from the city to a small island and landed right beside the beach.”

seaplane is an aircraft.

Where it comes from

Sea plus plane, said to have been coined by Winston Churchill when he was at the Admiralty.

From sea + plane. Supposedly coined by Winston Churchill.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Vehicles & Machines

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seaplane in the wild

A seaplane tender is a boat or ship that supports the operation of seaplanes.
Seaplane tender
The Lake Hood Strip (ICAO: PALH, FAA LID: LHD) is a gravel runway located adjacent to the seaplane base.
Lake Hood Seaplane Base
Operating continuously and open to the public, Lake Hood is the world's busiest seaplane base, handling an average of 190 flights per day.
Lake Hood Seaplane Base
Chatham Seaplane Base is a privately owned, public use seaplane base located in Chatham in the U.S. state of Alaska.
Chatham Seaplane Base
Trident Basin Seaplane Base is a city-owned, public-use seaplane base located in the City of Kodiak, in the Kodiak Island Borough of the U.S. state of United States.
Trident Basin Seaplane Base

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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