Definition of "pilot"

pilot

/ˈpaɪlət/

noun
plural pilots
1. A person who steers a ship, a helmsman.
  Quotations
  They scud before the wind, and sail in open sea. Ahead of all the master pilot steers; And, as he leads, the following navy veers.
  1697, Virgil, “The First Book of the Æneis”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […]
2. A person who knows well the depths and currents of a harbor or coastal area, who is hired by a vessel to help navigate the harbor or coast.
3. A guide book for maritime navigation.
4. An instrument for detecting the compass error.
5. (Australia, road transport, informal) A pilot vehicle.
6. (Australia, road transport) A person authorised to drive such a vehicle during an escort.
7. A guide or escort through an unknown or dangerous area.
  Quotations
  So we mounted our horses, and put out for that town, under the direction of two friendly Creeks we had taken for pilots.
  1834, David Crockett, A Narrative of the Life of David Crockett, E. L. Cary and A. Hart, page 43
8. Something serving as a test or trial.
  Quotations
  “I agreed with my husband when he said that to do the business properly we must do a pilot first.”
  2018, Tsitsi Dangarembga, This Mournable Body, Faber & Faber (2020), page 40
  1. (mining) The heading or excavation of relatively small dimensions, first made in the driving of a larger tunnel.
9. (aviation) A person who is in charge of the controls of an aircraft.
10. (television) A sample episode of a proposed TV series produced to decide if it should be made or not. If approved, typically the first episode of an actual TV series.
  Quotations
  I think her biggest deal was she starred in a pilot. […] Well, the way they pick TV shows is they make one show. That show's called a pilot. Then they show that one show to the people who pick shows, and on the strength of that one show, they decide if they wanna make more shows.
  1994, Quentin Tarantino, Roger Avary, Pulp Fiction, spoken by Jules (Samuel L. Jackson)
11. (rail transport) A cowcatcher.
12. (Europe, motor racing) A racing driver.
13. A pilot light.
14. One who flies a kite.
  Quotations
  Julia has become quite a good kite pilot. She has learned how to repeatedly buzz her father's head, coming within two feet, and not hitting him.
  2003, John P. Glaser, A Father's Collage, page 31
15. A short plug, sometimes made interchangeable, at the end of a counterbore to guide the tool.
adjective
not comparable
1. Made or used as a test or demonstration of capability.
2. Used to control or activate another device.
3. Being a vehicle to warn other road users of the presence of an oversize vehicle/combination.
verb
third-person singular simple present pilots, present participle piloting, simple past and past participle piloted
1. (transitive) To control (an aircraft or watercraft).
2. (transitive) To guide (a vessel) through coastal waters.
3. (transitive) To test or have a preliminary trial of (an idea, a new product, etc.)
4. (rail transport, of a locomotive) To serve as the leading locomotive on a double-headed train.
  Quotations
  One of the Midland Lines' Birmingham R.C.W. Type 2 diesels, No. D5403, made the debut of its class in the Manchester area on July 28 when it appeared in the early hours on freight; after four days in the area it left for the south piloting B.R./Sulzer Type 4 diesel No. D88 on the 2.25 Manchester Central-St. Pancras.
  1962 October, “Motive Power Miscellany: London Midland Region: Midland Lines”, in Modern Railways, page 279