Aloft means up in the air or high above the ground. When a kite soars aloft on a windy day, it's floating high in the sky. When a bird carries a twig aloft to build its nest, it's flying upward with the twig in its beak.

The word suggests something lifted and suspended in the air, staying elevated rather than just momentarily leaving the ground. A hot air balloon rises aloft and drifts above the landscape. A juggler keeps balls aloft by tossing them continuously. Sailors use the word to describe climbing up into a ship's rigging: going aloft means scaling the tall masts high above the deck.

You might also hear people say someone is holding something aloft, meaning they're raising it triumphantly above their head. When a team captain holds the championship trophy aloft, everyone can see it gleaming. The word carries a sense of elevation and freedom, like something escaping the pull of the earth below.