Pronunciation Key
| a | cat (kat), plaid (plad), half (haf) |
| ah | father (fah THur), heart (hahrt) |
| air | carry (kair ee), bear (bair), where (whair) |
| aw | all (awl), law (law), bought (bawt) |
| ay | say (say), break (brayk), vein (vayn) |
| e | bet (bet), says (sez), deaf (def) |
| ee | bee (bee), team (teem), fear (feer) |
| i | bit (bit), women (wim uhn), build (bild) |
| ı | ice (ıs), lie (lı), sky (skı) |
| o | hot (hot), watch (wotch) |
| oh | open (oh puhn), sew (soh) |
| oi | boil (boil), boy (boi) |
| oo | pool (pool), move (moov), shoe (shoo) |
| or | order (or dur), more (mor) |
| ou | house (hous), now (nou) |
| u | good (gud), should (shud) |
| uh | cup (kuhp), flood (fluhd), button (buht uhn) |
| ur | burn (burn), pearl (purl), bird (burd) |
| yoo | use (yooz), few (fyoo), view (vyoo) |
| hw | what (hwuht), when (hwen) |
| TH | that (THat), breathe (breeTH) |
| zh | measure (mezh ur), garage (guh razh) |
abandon (uh ban duhn): leave forever
academic (ak uh dem ik): having to do with school
acre (ay kur): an area almost as large as a football field, or 43,560 square feet
aerial (air ee uhl): in the air
agile (aj uhl): able to move quickly and easily
aggressive (uh gre siv): fierce or threatening
air ace: a pilot with at least 5 planes shot down
air show: demonstration of airplane maneuvers for a crowd
airstrip: runway
algebra (al juh bruh): mathematics that uses letters and symbols to represent numbers in equations
ally (al ı): friend, especially during wartime
altitude: the height of something above the ground
ammunition (am yuh nish uhn): bullets, bombs, and shells
Army Air Corps (cor): the aircraft service of the army, before the air force started
assault (uh sawlt): violent attack on someone or something
atomic (uh tom ik) bomb: a powerful bomb that explodes with great force, heat, and light, enough to destroy large areas
badgering (badj ur ing): continually asking someone to do something
belly fuel tank: outside fuel tank attached to the bottom of the plane that can be dropped when empty
blitzkrieg (blits kreeg): German for “lightning war,” because of how quickly it moved
bomber plane: a plane whose main job is to drop bombs on targets on land or sea
brutal: extremely violent
buzzed: in an airplane, flew low to the ground
cadet (kuh det): a young person training to become a member of the armed forces
celebrity (suh leb ri tee): a famous person, especially an entertainer or a movie star
clarinet (klair uh net): a woodwind instrument shaped like a long, straight tube with a small horn on the end
cockpit: the area in the front of a plane where the pilot sits
combat: fighting between people or armies
commanding officer: officer in charge of a military unit
commitment: promise to do something or support something
competitor (kuhm pe ti tor): one who participates in a contest of some kind
confidently: having a strong belief in your own abilities
conflict: difference and disagreement
Congress: the part of American government where laws and other important decisions are made
Congressional (kuhn gre shuhn uhl): having to do with Congress
construction: building something large, like a house, road, or bridge
convoy: group of ships traveling together
coordinator (koh ord uhn ay tur): someone who plans many events to take place around the same time
counterattack: an attack in reply to an attack
cumbersome (kuhm bur suhm): clumsy and heavy
deflection: making something go in a different direction
demerit (di mair it): a mark made against one’s record
devastated: shocked or distressed
dictator (dik tay tur): a leader who has absolute power over his country
din: great deal of noise
dive-bomber: an airplane that drops its bombs while diving at the enemy
dodo (doh doh): first-year flying school cadet
downed: shot down
drill: lesson on how to do something by doing it over and over again
duty: period of service in war
ejected: hurled out of the cockpit by a special seat during an emergency
elite (i leet): special
encounter: an unexpected or difficult meeting
eventful: filled with things that are interesting or important
fellow: in the same group, or with the same rank
.50-caliber: gun with a half-inch barrel
fighter plane: a plane whose main job is to attack other planes
firepower: ability to use weapons
flying ace: a highly skilled military pilot
formation: a special arrangement of planes in the air
4-H Club: a club where kids learn farming and home economics
General: the person with the highest rank in the U.S. army
grounded: not allowed to fly
gunnery: science of operating guns
hand-eye coordination (koh ord uhn ay shun): using the eyes to direct the hands, as in handwriting or baseball
hangar: a large shed for repairing airplanes
hectic: very busy
hesitating: pausing before doing something
horsepower: a unit of power equal to the power of one horse
humble: not proud
humid: damp and moist
induct: to let into an elite group
infantry (in fuhn tree): the part of the army that fights on foot
instructor: teacher
instrument: tool used in navigating flight
jet engine: engine that creates power by pushing hot gases behind the plane
kamikaze (kah mi kah zee): Japanese pilot who kills himself in battle
lead (led): the material used in bullets
leave: time off
Lockheed: an airplane company that built many planes for the U. S. military
malaria (muh lair ee uh): a disease carried by mosquitoes
maneuver (muh noo vur): difficult movement that needs planning and skill
mess hall: dining hall on a military base
military base: an area owned by the government, used to train soldiers and store weapons
mission: in war, an assignment to capture, defend, or destroy
modest: not thinking too highly of yourself
mourned (mornd): felt sadness or grief for someone who has died
natural resource: a commonly used material that comes from the earth, such as oil, coal, or iron
navigation: the science of directing an aircraft
Nazi (nah tsee): a brutal political party in Germany from 1933–1945 that was led by Adolf Hitler
oil refinery (ri fı nur ee): plant where crude oil is turned into gasoline and other types of fuel
patrol: a mission to find out where the enemy is
Piper Cub: small and lightweight passenger plane
press conference: an interview held by a famous person for reporters
procured (proh kyoord): got something by effort
promoted: moved to a higher rank
publicity (puhb li si tee): being noticed by the public in a newspaper or on television
pursuer: person that follows or chases someone in order to catch him or her
radar (ray dahr): system that detects faraway aircraft by bouncing radio waves off of them
rally: large meeting
reluctantly: not wanting to do something
rival (rı vuhl): person competing against someone
serve: to work, especially for the military, the church, or one’s country
slide rule: a ruler with a sliding piece used for making calculations before calculators were invented
South Pacific: area south of the equator that includes Australia, New Guinea, and the East Indies
squadron: a unit of between 12 and 24 pilots
standing ovation: standing up to clap and cheer loudly
stationed: sent to a particular military base
strategy (strat uh jee): plan for achieving a specific goal
technique (tek neek): method or way or doing something that requires skills
tilling: preparing land for growing crops
tormented: upset or annoyed someone on purpose
tracer bullet: brightly burning ammunition that helps pilots direct fire at the enemy
trigonometry (trig uh nom uh tree): a type of mathematics that deals with angles and triangles
20 mm (millimeter) cannon: gun with a 20 millimeter barrel
U.S. war bond: safe investment sold by the U.S. government
upperclassman: student who has finished the first year in a training program or school
veteran: a person who has fought in a war
washed out: failed
welder: a person who joins pieces of metal or plastic together by heating the pieces until they melt together