Plain English Meaning

It's the deliberate shape of a wing (or blade) that makes air behave in a way that produces lift. Designers pick the shape based on what the aircraft needs to do — fly fast, fly slow, carry heavy loads, or maneuver sharply.

Full Definition

The shape and structural characteristics given to a surface — most commonly a wing, propeller blade, or rotor blade — so that it produces a useful aerodynamic force (typically lift) when air flows around it. Key design features include the airfoil's cross-sectional shape (camber, thickness, leading and trailing edge geometry), chord length, and . These features determine how the airfoil performs across different speeds, , and .