navigate

verb nav·i·gate \ ˈna-və-ˌgāt \

Updated on: 17 May 2018

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

My daughter did a great job of navigating with the GPS on my phone, backed up by a paper map.

— susan glaser, cleveland.com, "Iceland Travel Blog: Warming up in Blue Lagoon, plus tips on saving money, driving," 14 May 2018
They’re brick-and-mortar facilities already in place and comfortable with navigating the business of and technology for gambling.

— bryce miller, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Next step for California in sports betting debate: Cash in," 14 May 2018
In his Mother's Day speech to about 1,800 graduates of SNHU's College of Online and Continuing Education, Garcetti spoke about navigating borders both physical and psychological.

— cindy chang, latimes.com, "Eric Garcetti, still weighing a presidential run, delivers commencement address in New Hampshire," 13 May 2018
And bike sharing has unlocked a ton of American interest in navigating cities on a bike: Usage has grown from 320,000 rides in 2010 to 28 million in 2016.

— clive thompson, WIRED, "The Vehicle of the Future Has Two Wheels, Handlebars, and Is a Bike," 13 May 2018
Morris has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and will have a master’s in business in the fall after navigating the school’s one-year MBA program.

— edward lee, baltimoresun.com, "Maryland men’s lacrosse players look to 'old' Dan Morris, Tim Rotanz for guidance," 12 May 2018
In addition to the challenge of navigating the dark, cramped labyrinths of tangled wreckage left behind, TEPCO has had to contend with radioactivity—the high levels act something like noise in electronic circuits.

— william steel, Ars Technica, "Remediating Fukushima—“When everything goes to hell, you go back to basics”," 11 May 2018
Meanwhile, SpotMini — Boston Dynamics' dog robot that just learned how to open doors — has upgraded to navigating a course on its own.

— brett molina, USA TODAY, "Watch: These Boston Dynamics robots can run and navigate by themselves," 11 May 2018
Adding Robbin Season to its title, the show declared its intent, and wrestled with its success as navigating a new world full of a new set of takers while still trying to shake all the old ones.

— joshua rivera, GQ, "Atlanta Robbin' Season," 11 May 2018

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

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

navigate Synonyms

Synonyms

course, cover, cross, cut (across), follow, go, pass (over), perambulate, peregrinate, proceed (along), track, transit, travel, traverse;

Related Words

hike, traipse, tramp, tread, walk;

ride, run;

crisscross;

Other Nautical Terms

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

NAVIGATE Defined for English Language Learners

navigate

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)