Its aviation sense comes from a flying machine built over 100 years ago in Paris in which early student pilots would practice taking off and landing; because this aircraft spent most of the time slowly rolling around the flight school grounds like a taxicab looking for a fare, it acquired the name “taxi.” Today, ...

In aviation, the term "taxi" (referring to an aircraft moving on the ground) actually predates the common use of the word for automobiles. It originates from the 1911-1912 era of flight schools in France and England. Early flight trainers were heavy, low-powered aircraft that couldn't actually fly; they were used only for ground maneuvers. These flightless trainers were nicknamed "taxis" because they slowly "cruised" around the airfield, much like a taxicab driver looking for passengers in a city. Pilots began using the verb "to taxi" to describe the act of running the plane along the ground under its own power. By the time commercial aviation took off, the terminology was firmly established. Today, when your pilot says, "We are third in line for taxi," they are using a century-old term that reminds us of the time when airplanes were just "grounded" machines learning how to take flight.