interstage

I1N1T1E1R1S1T1A1G2E1

noun

The structure, generally containing mechanical components and instruments but no engines or fuel tanks, connecting the top of a stage of a multistage rocket to the bottom of the stage above it.

OriginEnglish stage ← Latin inter- ← Proto-Italic *n̥ter →
UncommonScrabble 11
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Meanings

nouninterstage (plural interstages)

plural interstages

  1. aerospaceThe structure, generally containing mechanical components and instruments but no engines or fuel tanks, connecting the top of a stage of a multistage rocket to the bottom of the stage above it.
  2. governmentThe components of a multistage thermonuclear weapon which channel the radiation produced by the primary's fission explosion so as to trigger the implosion of the secondary and ignite a fusion explosion in the secondary's fusion fuel.
adjectiveinterstage (not comparable)
  1. not comparableBetween stages.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₁én
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₁n̥tér
  3. Proto-Italic*n̥ter
  4. Latininter
  5. Latininter-
  6. Englishinter-
  7. Englishstage
  8. Englishinterstage

From inter- + stage.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

interstage. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/interstage

MLA

“interstage.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/interstage. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “interstage,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/interstage.

Source: interstage on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.