Enplaning

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The process of boarding passengers onto an aircraft, which involves the movement of individuals from the terminal to the plane
2. A procedure that entails travelers entering an airplane, often after checking in and waiting in the airport lounge
3. The act of getting onto an aircraft, typically as part of the travel process after security checks and boarding announcements

Etymology: "Enplaning" is the present participle of "enplane," which is built from the prefix "en-" and the noun "plane." The "en-" prefix, which passed into English through Old French from Latin "in-," means "into" or "on," so the verb literally means putting someone into a plane. The companion verb "deplane" follows the same pattern, with "de-" meaning "off" or "out of." The base word "plane" is the crucial part. Its aeroplane sense is a shortening of "aeroplane," a term from the early twentieth century, and that aircraft sense is the one that "enplane" draws on. Because "plane" has several unrelated meanings, including a flat surface, a carpentry tool, and a tree, the verb's clear link to aircraft comes from that later sense rather than any older word.

Synonyms: boarding, embarking

Antonyms: disembarking, deplaning