aquanaut

noun aqua·naut \ ˈä-kwə-ˌnȯt , ˈa- , -ˌnät \

Editor's Note: aquanaut Has Greek Roots

Definition of aquanaut

: a scuba diver who lives and operates both inside and outside an underwater shelter for an extended period

Recent Examples of aquanaut from the Web

There, four aquanauts at a time can practice living and working in an environment that really wasn’t meant for humans to inhabit.

— philip toledano, National Geographic, "8 Amazing Places You Can Visit ‘Mars’ on Earth," 12 Dec. 2016
There, four aquanauts at a time can practice living and working in an environment that really wasn’t meant for humans to inhabit.

— philip toledano, National Geographic, "8 Amazing Places You Can Visit ‘Mars’ on Earth," 12 Dec. 2016

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'aquanaut.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

aquanaut Has Greek Roots

Aquanaut combines aqua with the Greek nautes, meaning "sailor". Like astronaut and aeronaut, the word may remind you of those mythical Greek heroes known as the Argonauts, who sailed with Jason on his ship, the Argo, in quest of the Golden Fleece. Various underwater habitats for aquanauts, such as Conshelf, SEALAB, and MarineLab, have captured the public imagination since the 1960s.