Meaning & use
launch tube
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountablemilitarytechnical
A tube-shaped container from which a missile or rocket is fired.
Grammar: Countable: one launch tube, several launch tubes.
Patterns
- a launch tube for something
- fire something from a launch tube
The submarine fires its missiles straight up out of vertical launch tubes.
Soldiers loaded a rocket into the launch tube and took cover.
The launcher has four launch tubes, each holding one missile.
nouncountabletechnical
A tube used to send a lifeboat or rescue craft quickly into the water.
Grammar: Countable and usually used in the plural when talking about a ship's equipment.
Patterns
- a lifeboat launch tube
The rescue boat slid out of its launch tube in seconds.
Newer ships use launch tubes instead of traditional davits.
Word forms
| plural | launch tubes |
|---|
Common combinations
- vertical launch tube
- The destroyer carries missiles in vertical launch tubes.
- missile launch tube
- Each missile launch tube can be reloaded at sea.
- fire from a launch tube
- The drone is fired from a small launch tube.
- a bank of launch tubes
- A bank of launch tubes sits behind the bridge.
Synonyms and how they differ
- launcher
- Launcher is the wider term for the whole device; a launch tube is just the tube part.
- silo
- A silo is a large underground structure for big missiles, while a launch tube is a smaller tube, often on a vehicle or ship.
Word family
- launch verb
- to send something into the air or water, or to start something
Commonly confused: launch tube or torpedo tube?
launch tube vs torpedo tube
A torpedo tube is for firing torpedoes underwater, while a launch tube usually fires rockets or missiles, often above water.
Practice
The soldier loaded a rocket into the ___ and stepped back.
Choose one answer.
A launch tube is the tube that holds and fires a rocket, so it fits 'loaded a rocket into'. A launch pad is the platform a rocket stands on, and a launch window is a period of time for launching.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “launch tube”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.