Bisa ga ma'anar ƙamus, kalmar "aerial torpedo" yawanci tana nufin wani nau'in makami ko na'ura wanda aka kera don harba daga jirgin sama ko wani dandamalin iska da kuma motsa shi zuwa ga manufa don haifar da lalacewa ko lalacewa. A cikin mahallin soja, ana amfani da torpedo ta iska a matsayin ma'anar makami mai linzami da aka harba ta iska ko bam da ake son jefawa daga jirgin a kuma jagorance shi zuwa wata manufa ta musamman, kamar jirgin ruwa, gini, ko kayan aikin soja. . Kalmar “torpedo ta iska” kuma tana iya nufin makaman tarihi da aka yi amfani da su a da, kamar su farkon nau’ikan makamai masu linzami masu shiryarwa ko bama-bamai da aka yi amfani da su a lokacin yaƙi.