What does airsick mean?
Airsick describes the nausea, dizziness, and sometimes vomiting that some people experience during air travel, caused by the motion of an aircraft disturbing the inner ear's sense of balance. It is the airborne counterpart of seasickness and carsickness, all forms of motion sickness. The word functions as an adjective, typically appearing after the noun it modifies — passengers feel airsick rather than being described as 'an airsick person'. It carries no strong connotation beyond mild sympathy; it is a neutral, everyday term found in travel writing, aviation contexts, and casual conversation. Turbulence is the most common trigger, though even smooth flights can affect sensitive travellers. The related noun form, airsickness, names the condition itself, and the disposable paper bags stowed in seat pockets exist largely because of it. For anyone writing about travel or health, airsick offers a precise, instantly understood way to describe this familiar discomfort of flight.
adjectiveSuffering from nausea or vomiting caused by the motion of an aircraft in flight.
- Experiencing nausea, dizziness, or vomiting as a result of the motion of an aircraft.
"Halfway across the Atlantic, she turned pale and admitted she was feeling airsick."
"The turbulence over the Rockies left several passengers feeling distinctly airsick."
"He had never been airsick before, but the bumpy descent into Kathmandu changed that."
The humble airsick bag has become an unlikely canvas — some airlines have commissioned artists to design them, turning a symbol of misery into a collector's item.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of airsick
Airsick combines 'air', referring to flight, with 'sick', from Old English 'sēoc', meaning ill or unwell. The compound arose in the early twentieth century once powered flight made air travel — and its attendant nausea — a real experience; it follows the pattern of older compounds such as seasick and homesick. Its siblings seasick and carsick share the same underlying root in the English word 'sick', each pairing it with a mode of transport.
Related word forms
How airsick is actually used
Informal to neutral in register; common in everyday and travel writing. Predominantly used predicatively ('she felt airsick') rather than attributively ('an airsick passenger' is less common). Related terms like 'motion sickness' are broader and more clinical.
Easily confused with airsick
Seasick refers to motion sickness from travel by sea, whereas airsick refers specifically to sickness caused by aircraft motion.
Carsick is nausea from travelling in a car or other road vehicle, while airsick arises from flying in an aircraft.