thruster

noun

thrust·​er ˈthrə-stər 

variants or less commonly thrustor

: one that thrusts

especially : an engine (such as a jet engine) that develops thrust by expelling a jet of fluid or a stream of particles

Examples of thruster in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Some of the Link spacecraft’s most complicated elements, like its robotic arms and plasma thrusters, worked as expected. — Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 1 Oct. 2026

While Katalyst’s engineers were able to use the satellite’s thrusters to slow its unexpected spin and upload new flight software, the maneuver that reoriented LINK in space also depleted its propellant. — Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 30 Sep. 2026

Onboard sensors continuously track wind, waves, currents, and ship orientation in real time, automatically firing thrusters to micro-adjust and keep the giant frozen in place. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 29 Sep. 2026

These were exercised during CFT, and along with our expert flight control team, the manual control capabilities on Starliner were critical to achieving a safe docking despite numerous thruster failures. — Mike Wall, Space.com, 28 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1597, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for thruster

• bluster
• buster
• cluster
• duster
• juster
• luster
• lustre
• maister
• muster
• trustor
• adjuster
• baluster

Kids Definition

thruster

noun

thrust·​er ˈthrəs-tər 

: one that thrusts

especially : an engine that produces thrust by discharging a jet of fluid or a stream of particles