You talk about aerial attacks and aerial photographs to indicate that people or things on the ground are attacked or photographed by people in aeroplanes.
Weeks of aerial bombardment had destroyed factories and highways.
He planned to take aerial photographs of the Baru volcano.
The film begins with an aerial view of the Great Basin of Nevada.
2. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
You can use aerial to describe things that exist or happen above the ground or in the air.
The seagulls swirled in aerial combat over the barges.
3. countable noun
An aerial is a device or a piece of wire that receives television or radio signals and is usually attached to a radio, television, car, or building.
[British]
...a saucer-shaped satellite television aerial.
...the radio aerials of taxis and cars.
regional note: in AM, use antenna
aerial in British English
(ˈɛərɪəl)
adjective
1.
of, relating to, or resembling air
2.
existing, occurring, moving, or operating in the air
aerial cable car
aerial roots of a plant
3.
ethereal; light and delicate
4.
imaginary; visionary
5.
extending high into the air; lofty
6.
of or relating to aircraft
aerial combat
noun
7. Also called: antenna
the part of a radio or television system having any of various shapes, such as a dipole, Yagi, long-wire, or vertical aerial, by means of which radio waves are transmitted or received
Word origin
C17: via Latin from Greek aērios, from aēr air
aerial in American English
(ˈɛriəl; for adj., also eɪˈɪriəl)
adjective
1.
of, in, or by the air
2.
like air; light as air
3.
not substantial; unreal; imaginary
4.
high up; lofty
5.
of, for, from, or by means of aircraft or flying
an aerial photograph
6. Botany
growing in the air instead of in soil or water
noun
7.
antenna (sense 2)
8. Gymnastics
a running somersault performed without the use of hands
Derived forms
aerially (ˈaerially)
adverb
Word origin
< L aerius < aer (see air) + -al
Examples of 'aerial' in a sentence
aerial
He is a complete player who can mix it physically and is an aerial threat.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
England did not offer much of an aerial threat and yet they scored three headed goals.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The manager is hampered by a lack of aerial ability.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The flight was a delight, offering aerial views of the unblemished mountain snow and glaciers.
The Sun (2016)
Plus the punishing impact of US-led aerial bombardment.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Inevitably in the fast-moving world of aerial combat, their noble goal was not always attainable.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The weapons are designed for aerial combat.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
CAN'T wait for the first aerial challenge between these two to see who comes out on top.
The Sun (2014)
It struggled about six metres into the air before it hit a radio aerial and crashed.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
It is astonishing to see these tiny birds engaged in such a fierce aerial battle.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
They were short of essential supplies and were continually subject to aerial bombardment.
Stewart, Bob (Lt-Col) Broken Lives (1993)
Extras include presenters and aerial filming by helicopter.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Those cinematic aerial views of the city are delicious.
The Sun (2006)
The aerial bombardment had continued throughout the night.
Oliver Poole BLACK KNIGHTS: On the Bloody Road to Baghdad (2003)
At one point something got caught on his radio aerial.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
What a contrast to the aerial combat in which we had been fighting for our lives just a short time before!
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
You'll need to be a dab hand at aerial acrobatics to succeed in this game.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
His aerial ability will keep him in the Prem.
The Sun (2012)
Won the aerial battle with Hangeland without making the most of his chances.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
The aerial combat is spectacular.
Oxenhorn, Harvey Tuning the Rig: A Journey to the Arctic (1990)
I love an aerial zip wire, me.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Many of those hurt were cut by flying glass, although aerial film footage showed that large parts of the concrete structure had completely collapsed.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
As a bonus, he is an aerial threat at set-pieces.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
And I like aerial acrobatics.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
He can pass, he can tackle, he is quick and he possesses an aerial threat that makes him a danger in both penalty areas.
The Sun (2009)
In other languages
aerial
British English: aerial /ˈɛərɪəl/ NOUN
An aerial is a piece of metal equipment that receives television or radio signals.
American English: antenna
Arabic: هَوَائِيّ
Brazilian Portuguese: antena
Chinese: 天线
Croatian: zračni
Czech: anténa
Danish: antenne
Dutch: antenne
European Spanish: antena
Finnish: antenni
French: antenne
German: Antenne
Greek: κεραία
Italian: antenna
Japanese: アンテナ
Korean: 안테나
Norwegian: antenne
Polish: antena
European Portuguese: antena
Romanian: antenă
Russian: антенна
Latin American Spanish: antena
Swedish: antenn
Thai: เสาอากาศ
Turkish: anten
Ukrainian: антена
Vietnamese: cột anten
British English: aerial ADJECTIVE
You talk about aerial photographs to indicate that people or things on the ground are photographed by people in aeroplanes.
Weeks of aerial bombardment had destroyed factories and highways.
American English: aerial
Brazilian Portuguese: aéreo
Chinese: 从空中的 >袭击等
European Spanish: aéreo
French: aérien
German: Luft-
Italian: aereo
Japanese: 航空機による
Korean: 항공기에 의한
European Portuguese: aéreo
Latin American Spanish: aéreo
All related terms of 'aerial'
aerial mast
a mast on which an aerial is mounted
aerial root
a root that grows from the stem of a plant, above ground or above water
beam aerial
an aerial system, such as a Yagi aerial, having directional properties
dish aerial
a microwave aerial , used esp in radar , radio telescopes , and satellite broadcasting, consisting of a parabolic reflector
loop aerial
an aerial that consists of one or more coils of wire wound on a frame . Maximum radiation or reception is in the plane of the loop , the minimum occurring at right angles to it
slot aerial
a transmitting aerial in which the radiating elements are open slots in a surrounding metal sheet
Yagi aerial
a highly directional aerial , used esp in television and radio astronomy , consisting of three or more elements lying parallel to each other, the principal direction of radiation being along the line of the centres
aerial camera
a camera used to take pictures from the air
aerial input
a socket for an aerial
aerial ladder
a power-operated extending ladder mounted on a fire engine
aerial survey
a survey carried out from the air, using an aeroplane or helicopter
aerial tanker
an aircraft used to transport fuel or water
dipole aerial
two electric charges or magnetic poles that have equal magnitudes but opposite signs and are separated by a small distance
frame aerial
an aerial that consists of one or more coils of wire wound on a frame . Maximum radiation or reception is in the plane of the loop , the minimum occurring at right angles to it
aerial ability
Your ability to do something is the fact that you can do it.
aerial cableway
a transport system in which cars, buckets , etc run on cables .
aerial pingpong
Australian Rules football
aerial railway
a system of railway cars that move on cables
aerial tramway
tramway (sense 4 )
communal aerial
a television or radio receiving aerial from which received signals are distributed by cable to several outlets
rhombic aerial
a directional travelling-wave aerial , usually horizontal, consisting of two conductors each forming a pair of adjacent sides of a rhombus
aerial challenge
If you challenge someone, you invite them to fight or compete with you in some way.
aerial perspective
a means of indicating relative distance in terms of a gradation of clarity , tone , and colour, esp blue
aerial photograph
a photograph taken from the air
aerial photography
Aerial photography is the process of taking photographs of an area from above, for example from an airplane or mast .
cloverleaf aerial
a type of aerial , having three or four similar coplanar loops arranged symmetrically around an axis , to which in-phase signals are fed
parabolic aerial
a microwave aerial , used esp in radar , radio telescopes, and satellite broadcasting, consisting of a parabolic reflector
ferrite-rod aerial
a type of aerial , normally used in radio reception , consisting of a small coil of wire mounted on a ferrite core , the coil serving as a tuning inductance
long-wire aerial
a travelling-wave aerial consisting of one or more conductors, the length of which usually exceeds several wavelengths
aerial top dressing
the process of spreading lime , fertilizer, etc over farmland from an aeroplane
ground-plane aerial
a quarter-wave vertical dipole aerial in which the electrical image forming the other quarter-wave section is formed by reflection in a system of radially disposed metal rods or in a conductive sheet
satellite dish aerial
a parabolic aerial for reception from or transmission to an artificial satellite
atmospheric perspective
a means of indicating relative distance in terms of a gradation of clarity , tone , and colour, esp blue
turntable ladder
a power-operated extending ladder mounted on a fire engine
tramway
A tramway is a set of rails laid in the surface of a road for trams to travel along.