The story
From mono- + plane. The aviation sense was formed by analogy with biplane; compare French monoplan, as well as the earlier English aeroplane, multiplane, and triplane.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Today it means: Composed of, or relating to, a single plane (flat surface extending infinitely in all directions). Full definition →
From mono- + plane. The aviation sense was formed by analogy with biplane; compare French monoplan, as well as the earlier English aeroplane, multiplane, and triplane.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.