navigation

noun

nav·​i·​ga·​tion ˌna-və-ˈgā-shən 

1

: the act or practice of navigating

2

: the science of getting vehicles from place to place

especially : the method of determining position, course, and distance traveled

3

: ship traffic or commerce

navigational

ˌna-və-ˈgā-sh(ə-)nəl 

adjective

navigationally adverb

Examples of navigation in a Sentence

If you're going to be a good sailor you need to master navigation.

I don't mind driving if you're willing to do the navigation.

Our new car has an onboard navigation system.

Navigation becomes more difficult further upriver.

There are back and forward buttons for easier browser navigation.

Recent Examples on the Web

Mputu said nighttime boat navigation has led to many accidents in the past. — ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026

Brower and Simone learned that pigeons were a common source of food for people thousands of years ago and used the sun, and probably the earth's magnetic field, for navigation. — Kyle Melnick The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 4 Oct. 2026

Navigation was another problem the agent had to solve, with GPT-6 Astra generating a C++ helper that used AzerothCore’s navigation-mesh data, known as mmaps, to calculate routes. — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 4 Oct. 2026

As the Malwarebytes blog notes, a connected vehicle contacting its manufacturer isn’t an issue in itself, since updates, safety alerts, and navigation all require internet access. — Alan Henry, PC Magazine, 2 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1547, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing navigation

• celestial navigation
• inertial navigation

Rhymes for navigation

• abdication
• aberration
• abjuration
• abnegation
• abrogation
• acceptation
• acclamation
• acclimation
• accusation
• activation
• actuation
• acylation

Kids Definition

navigation

noun

nav·​i·​ga·​tion ˌnav-ə-ˈgā-shən 

1

: the act or practice of navigating

2

: the science of getting ships, aircraft, or spacecraft from place to place

especially : the method of figuring out position, course, and distance traveled

navigational

-shnəl 

-shən-ᵊl

adjective