How to Use propellant in a Sentence

propellant

1 of 2 adjective
  • This would provide a huge mass and propellant savings on each spacecraft.
    — Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 1 Dec. 2021
  • There's a buildup of propellant residue in the narrow lines that feed hydrazine fuel to the thrusters.
    — Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 23 Oct. 2023
  • Most artillery shells are sent downrange by the detonation of a propellant charge in the breech of the gun.
    — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 12 Aug. 2022
  • The company has not yet said what might have gone wrong with Peregrine to trigger the propellant leak.
    — William Harwood, CBS News, 9 Jan. 2024
  • This in turn builds up the pressure inside the casing (which is all propellant), the casing explodes and the shell is on its way.
    — Kevin Brown, Popular Mechanics, 19 Nov. 2020
  • Each four-legged lander is about the size of a small car and weighed about 3,900 pounds at liftoff—most of that weight was propellant.
    — Ramin Skibba, WIRED, 18 Aug. 2023
  • The bottom stage carries the vehicle’s four landing legs, its engine, and propellant tanks.
    — Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 10 Aug. 2023
  • That first test flight in May was aborted seconds after the rocket was released due to a breakage in its propellant line.
    — Daniel Oberhaus, Wired, 17 Jan. 2021
  • In the Falcon 9, helium is the gas of choice to pressurize the propellant tank.
    — Joe Pappalardo, Popular Mechanics, 25 Oct. 2022
  • Another rover will be required to fetch the samples and deliver them to a lander for stowage aboard a solid-propellant rocket.
    — William Harwood, CBS News, 28 July 2020
  • This means that an air-breathing rocket can lift more stuff with less propellant and drastically lower the cost of space access—at least in theory.
    — Daniel Oberhaus, Ars Technica, 27 June 2020
  • Once the launch team got into propellant loading, work to fill the large liquid hydrogen tank was stymied by a leak at an 8-inch inlet leading into the tank.
    — Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 29 Aug. 2022
  • Acoustic sensors captured the exact moment of each cartridge's propellant charge going off and firing each bullet.
    — Jeremy Hsu, Discover Magazine, 1 Dec. 2014
  • Here's a video of a propellant launch exercise involving an Atlas F missile.
    — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 30 Oct. 2020
  • Both rifles used an ingenious form of ammunition called the Volition or rocket ball, which had a propellant charge in its base.
    — Matthew Moss, Popular Mechanics, 19 Dec. 2022
  • The Navy’s theory was that the man rigged a detonator and stuck it between bags of explosive propellant powder.
    — Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Aug. 2021
  • While booster tests have been performed since 2010 at the site, this new test’s main purpose was to try out propellant materials from new sources.
    — Richard Tribou, orlandosentinel.com, 3 Sep. 2020
  • During that first launch attempt, the ground controllers ran into a variety of propellant leaks and a faulty engine temperature sensor.
    — Tim Fernholz, Quartz, 17 Nov. 2022
  • The company was forced to stand down from a first attempt this month after an issue was detected with the propellant temperature in the rocket’s second stage.
    — Denise Chow, NBC News, 23 Mar. 2023
  • The company will also need to demonstrate propellant transfers between two in-orbit Starships, which has never been done before.
    — Michael Greshko, Scientific American, 18 Jan. 2024
  • The robotic Peregrine lander, still in orbit around Earth, appears to have a propellant leak that will prevent it from reaching the Moon.
    — Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 8 Jan. 2024
  • The launch was originally scheduled for Wednesday night, but that attempt was scrubbed due to a propellant temperature issue.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 2 July 2022
  • Expected in the near future, this will represent the first commercial launch of a liquid propellant launch vehicle in China.
    — Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 8 July 2022
  • The malfunction that caused the propellant leak appears to have been with a valve that did not properly reseat during the propulsion system's initialization sequence.
    — Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 22 Jan. 2024
  • United Launch Alliance has been conducting propellant loading tests on the rocket in recent weeks in advance of a wet dress rehearsal and a static fire test.
    — Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 24 Mar. 2023
  • Because trace amounts of residual propellant vapor were detected near the spacecraft, the team held up opening the Crew Dragon's hatch while the system was purged.
    — William Harwood, CBS News, 2 Aug. 2020
  • But with less than 10 minutes to go, engineers noted problems with a valve used to help pressurize one of the two propellant tanks in the Super Heavy first stage.
    — William Harwood, CBS News, 17 Apr. 2023
  • Analysts said some of the ICBMs appeared to be solid-propellant missiles that can be launched more quickly and are harder to detect.
    — Min Joo Kim, Washington Post, 18 Feb. 2023
  • But Blue Origin hasn't rolled a full-scale New Glenn rocket out to the launch pad for testing, including propellant loading and countdown rehearsals.
    — Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 22 Nov. 2023
  • The initial phases of the rendezvous went smoothly, but SpaceX engineers ran into problems with heaters used to keep thruster propellant lines at the proper temperature.
    — William Harwood, CBS News, 16 Nov. 2020

propellant

2 of 2 noun
  • When this happens, the propellant briefly forms a cloud in space.
    — Joshua Hawkins, BGR, 20 June 2022
  • The last step is to once again remove all the propellant from the rocket.
    — Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 17 Feb. 2026
  • For instance, it may be found in the propellant spray that helps get spray sunscreen out of cans.
    — Korin Miller, Verywell Health, 31 Jan. 2023
  • Novelty was a propellant, a reason to reach the end of each day faster.
    — Gloria Liu, The Atlantic, 21 Apr. 2022
  • Instead, benzene is part of the propellant that sprays the product out of the can.
    — Chris Smith, BGR, 4 Apr. 2022
  • During this process, the propellants will need to be kept well below their boiling points.
    — Chris Young, Interesting Engineering, 11 Aug. 2025
  • These liquids act as the propellant for the rocket during launch.
    — Marcos Fernandez Tous, The Conversation, 4 Mar. 2026
  • The review found that the chemical came from the propellant used to spray sunscreen out of the can.
    — Harold Maass, The Week, 1 Aug. 2022
  • However, the benzene came from the propellant that sprays the product out of the can.
    — Chris Smith, BGR, 2 Aug. 2022
  • This reduces the amount of propellant needed for the craft to maintain its orbit.
    — Justin Bachman, Anchorage Daily News, 24 Dec. 2021
  • Future crews on the Red Planet will need it to make propellant for the trip home.
    — Eric Niiler, Wired, 28 May 2021
  • Doing so, the lander burned its propellant too quickly—then spent two minutes in free fall.
    — Tim Fernholz, Quartz, 26 May 2023
  • More propellant can mean more range, but at a certain point that becomes dangerous.
    — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 12 Aug. 2022
  • The inert gas keeps their rocket hardware safe by pushing out more volatile propellants in the case of a scrub.
    — Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 4 Apr. 2026
  • Solid-fuel propellants can be safer to work with than liquid fuels.
    — George Petras, USA TODAY, 13 Apr. 2023
  • No propellant was on the vehicle, and engines were not yet installed.
    — Josh Dinner, Space.com, 21 Nov. 2025
  • But the loop’s slick design acts as a silent propellant, whisking hikers through in painless, speedy style.
    — Mare Czinar, The Arizona Republic, 2 Sep. 2023
  • Together, the rocket can hold more than ten million pounds of propellant.
    — Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Apr. 2023
  • The propellant is then expelled through a nozzle to generate thrust.
    — Chris Young, Interesting Engineering, 12 Jan. 2026
  • Rather, the chemical was detected in the propellant that sprays the sunscreen out of the can.
    — Orlando Mayorquin, USA TODAY, 2 Feb. 2023
  • Hydrogen also need not be the only form of propellant.
    — Keith Cooper, Space.com, 24 Sep. 2025
  • However, the substance comes from the propellant that sprays the deodorant out of the can.
    — Chris Smith, BGR, 17 Feb. 2022
  • This may require venting, leading to propellant loss.
    — Chris Young, Interesting Engineering, 11 Aug. 2025
  • The slow fill of two cryogenic propellants began on the SLS core stage.
    — Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 1 Apr. 2026
  • One where exhaust and propellant residues react with ozone, thinning the layer that shields life below.
    — New Atlas, 25 Oct. 2025
  • The engine uses storable propellants and is designed to be safe and tactical.
    — Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 25 Feb. 2026
  • The cost to rent housing is turning into a propellant for inflation.
    — George Avalos, The Mercury News, 11 Jan. 2024
  • The next thing might be the rocket propellants—oxygen, hydrogen.
    — Manasee Wagh, Popular Mechanics, 24 Mar. 2023
  • The acceleration fires the propellant into space as a spray (hence the name).
    — Elizabeth Howell, Space.com, 9 June 2026
  • Mueller said Helios could be refilled with propellant and then go on to other missions in orbit.
    — Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 19 Jan. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'propellant.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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