Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

flying saucer

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 3.05 in modern English

Syllables: fly-ing saucer
IPA

21

Scrabble Score

12

Letters

2

Syllables

12

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A disc-shaped unidentified flying object or UFO; originally in reference to sightings by aviator Kenneth Arnold in Washington in 1947.

Informal

noun

An alien interplanetary vessel, typically disc-shaped and of metallic construction.

noun

A form of confectionery, a small spheroidal capsule of rice paper filled with sherbet.

Example Sentences

"Some connect the recent spate of flying saucer sightings with a rumored top-secret military aviation project."
"Amateur airman Kenneth Arnold of Pendleton (Oregon) reported yesterday that he had seen "nine planes like flying saucers travelling at 1200 miles an hour.""
"An engram is NOT [...] One of the little green men Americans claim have crashed in flying saucers."

Etymology

From an interview given by amateur pilot Kenneth Arnold who described seeing nine flying objects that were "moving like saucers being skimmed across a lake". The description was not meant to describe the shape of the objects, only how they maneuvered, yet the misinterpretation took hold and gained popularity.

Usage

Informal

Inflected Forms

flying saucers (plural)

Phrases

flying saucer group flying disc

Frequently Paired Words

flying disc alien ET extraterrestrial foo foo fighter little green man Martian

Synonyms

saucercraft unidentified flying object ufo

Questions

What does flying saucer mean?: A disc-shaped unidentified flying object or UFO; originally in reference to sightings by aviator Kenneth Arnold in Washington in 1947.
Where does flying saucer come from?: From an interview given by amateur pilot Kenneth Arnold who described seeing nine flying objects that were "moving like saucers being skimmed across a lake". The description was not meant to describe the shape of the objects, only how they maneuvered, yet the misinterpretation took hold and gained popularity.

How to pronounce flying saucer

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