navigable

adjective

nav·​i·​ga·​ble ˈna-vi-gə-bəl 

1

a

: deep enough and wide enough to afford passage to ships

navigable waterways

b

: capable of being navigated

navigable terrain

2

: capable of being steered

navigability

ˌna-vi-gə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

navigably

ˈna-vi-gə-blē 

adverb

Synonyms

• cleared
• clear
• passable
• negotiable

Examples of navigable in a Sentence

The marsh was navigable only by canoe.

this map shows which rivers are navigable and which aren't

Recent Examples on the Web

The loss of Ehlers is navigable, but Winnipeg has to replace his offence. —Murat Ates, New York Times, 2 July 2025

Ticket Information Thames Tunnel/Brunel Museum The Thames Tunnel was the world’s first passage built through soft ground beneath a navigable river. —Joseph V Micallef, Forbes.com, 28 June 2025

The author mentions a unit of the First U.S. Dragoons ordered to travel to Des Moines to study whether the river was navigable. —Sandra Dallas, Denver Post, 18 May 2025

The energy tightrope that helped China through the supply shocks of the beginning of the war in Ukraine and subsequent global inflation appears to no longer be navigable. —Wesley Alexander Hill, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

navigable

adjective

nav·​i·​ga·​ble ˈnav-i-gə-bəl 

1

a

: deep and wide enough to permit passage to ships

navigable rivers

b

: capable of being navigated

navigable terrain

2

: capable of being steered

a navigable balloon

navigability

ˌnav-i-gə-ˈbil-ət-ē 

noun