navigate

play

verb nav·i·gate \ ˈna-və-ˌgāt \

Definition of navigate

navigated; navigating

intransitive verb

1 :to travel by water :sail

navigated down to the mouth of the river

2 :to steer a course through a medium; specifically :to operate an airplane

navigate by instrument

3 :get around, move

was well enough to navigate under his own power

transitive verb

1 a :to sail over, on, or through

able to navigate the deep ocean waters

b :to make one's way over or through :traverse

… navigate the Internet via hypertext links connecting information-rich computers around the world.
—Stephanie Losee

2 a :to steer or manage (a boat) in sailing

b :to operate or control the course of

navigate an airplane

See navigate defined for English-language learners

See navigate defined for kids

Examples of navigate in a Sentence

For thousands of years, sailors navigated by the stars.
How about if you drive and I navigate?
I'd need a map to navigate the city.
Only flat-bottomed boats can safely navigate the canal.
He has learned to navigate in rough waters.
The downtown area is easily navigated on foot.
She has trouble navigating the stairs with her crutches.
It took us 10 minutes to navigate through the parking lot to the exit.
The captain navigated the ship.
He has had experience navigating airplanes through storms.

Recent Examples of navigate from the Web

Calipari and assistant Kenny Payne made up ground on Duke and North Carolina late in the process and landed the five-star small forward in May. As Calipari sorted through the 2017 five-star names and navigated yet another No.

— fletcher page, The Courier-Journal, "Why the University of Kentucky will lose out on Romeo Langford," 18 July 2017
Navigating such a world is difficult and precarious.

— richard haass, The Atlantic, "Donald Trump and the Danger of 'Adhocracy'," 18 July 2017
East Includes Atwater Village, Eagle Rock, East L.A., Echo Park, Glendale, Los Feliz, Pasadena, San Gabriel Valley, Silver Lake Alimento Silver Lake, $$$ Chef Zach Pollack navigates regional demarcations like a Fiat cutting between Roman buses.

— garrett snyder, Los Angeles Magazine, "The Los Angeles Magazine Hot Restaurant List for July 2017," 18 July 2017
Along the way, Veronica navigates the treacherous halls of high school filled with obnoxious 1-percenters, aka the 09ers, and sticky social issues that are still super timely right now.

— fawnia soo hoo, Teen Vogue, "Break the Fashion Rules: These Are the 2000s-Throwback Styles You Need in Your Wardrobe Now," 13 July 2017
One of his favorites is Frogger, in which the player navigates the eponymous amphibian through lanes of car traffic to an awaiting pond.

— paul voosen, Science | AAAS, "How AI detectives are cracking open the black box of deep learning," 6 July 2017
Watts appear to have navigated the transition nicely.

— jen yamato, star-telegram.com, "Meet Spider-Man’s new webmaster," 4 July 2017
Catapult has helped the Crimson Tide navigate the long break that precedes the semifinal and then make the quicker turnaround for the championship game.

— rainer sabin, AL.com, "Inside the technology giving Alabama a competitive edge," 2 July 2017
More: How to navigate around the Brent Spence Bridge on July 4 Check Traffic The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet said to check the project website and social media every day for updates.

— sarah brookbank, Cincinnati.com, "The ultimate guide to living life through 2 months of Brent Spence Bridge repairs," 1 July 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of navigate

Latin navigatus, past participle of navigare, from navis ship + -igare (from agere to drive) — more at agent

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1588

See Words from the same year

navigate Synonyms

Synonyms

conn (also con), helm, pilot, steer

Related Words

commandeer, hijack (also highjack)

Other Nautical Terms

avast, aweigh, flotsam, jib, keel, lee, port, starboard, stay

NAVIGATE Defined for English Language Learners

navigate

play

verb

Definition of navigate for English Language Learners

: to find the way to get to a place when you are traveling in a ship, airplane, car, etc.
: to sail on, over, or through an area of water
: to travel on, over, or through (an area or place)