air pocket

Meanings

1. 1nouncountableinformal

   A sudden area of thin or sinking air that makes an aircraft drop for a moment.

   Grammar: Countable: hit an air pocket.

   Patterns

   • hit an air pocket
   • fly into an air pocket

   The plane hit an air pocket and dropped a few feet.

   My coffee spilled when we flew through an air pocket.

   Most passengers just call it an air pocket, not turbulence.

2. 2nouncountable

   A small space trapped inside something that is filled with air rather than the material around it.

   Grammar: Used for things like dough, ice, or buildings.

   Patterns

   • an air pocket in something

   There was an air pocket inside the loaf.

   The diver survived in an air pocket in the sunken ship.

   Air pockets in the concrete weakened the wall.

Word forms

Common combinations

hit an air pocket

We hit an air pocket just after takeoff.

trapped air pocket

A trapped air pocket kept the climbers alive.

large air pocket

A large air pocket formed under the paint.

air pocket in

There's an air pocket in this pipe.

drop in an air pocket

The helicopter seemed to drop in an air pocket.

Synonyms and how they differ

turbulence

Turbulence is the correct general term for rough air, whereas an air pocket suggests one brief drop.

bubble

A bubble is a pocket of gas inside liquid or a solid, and is more general than air pocket.

void

Void describes any empty space, with no hint that it contains air.

air gap

Air gap is a planned or measured space, but an air pocket is usually accidental.

Word family

air noun

the gases around us

pocket noun

a small enclosed space

airflow noun

movement of air

airtight adjective

sealed against air

Commonly confused: air pocket or turbulence?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “air pocket”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words