nautical mile

noun

: any of various units of distance used for sea and air navigation based on the length of a minute of arc of a great circle of the earth and differing because the earth is not a perfect sphere: such as

a

: a British unit equal to 6080 feet (1853.2 meters)

b

: an international unit equal to exactly 1852 meters (6076.115 feet or 1.15 statute miles) used officially in the U.S. since July 1, 1954

Examples of nautical mile in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The full-displacement ice-class hull—presented in satin gold—is intended for transoceanic cruising, greatly contributing to the yacht’s range of 6,000 nautical miles at 11 knots. —Julia Zaltzman, Robb Report, 18 Jan. 2026

On a quiet morning 161 nautical miles east of Beechey Island, my first and sole polar bear sighting revealed how unpredictable these white giants are. —Jillian Dara, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 Jan. 2026

Texas Children's also has a plane that is based in Houston that can carry patients who are much further than 200 nautical miles. —Nicole Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 12 Jan. 2026

In its 43 years of service, the Britannia banked over a million nautical miles and opened its decks to scores of influential people. —Bailey Bujnosek, InStyle, 12 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1830, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for nautical mile

• bibliophile
• epicondyle
• geotextile
• nucleophile
• aisle
• bile
• chyle
• file
• guile
• heil
• isle
• kyle

Kids Definition

nautical mile

noun

: any of various units of distance used for sea and air navigation equal to about 6076 feet (1852 meters)