navigate

verb

nav·i·gate | \ ˈna-və-ˌgāt

navigated; navigating

Definition of navigate

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

1a : 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

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

b : to operate or control the course of navigate an airplane

Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about navigate

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Synonyms for navigate

Synonyms

conn (also con), helm, pilot, steer

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 on the Web

Australian Barty navigated a dramatic three-set match against 17-year-old American Amanda Anisimova, eventually winning 6-7 6-3 6-3 on Court Suzanne-Lenglen. — Ben Church, CNN, "Teenager Marketa Vondrousova to face Ashleigh Barty in French Open final," 7 June 2019 New call-ups must also navigate a complicated social hierarchy that sometimes catches them by surprise. — Stephanie Apstein, SI.com, "The Perilous Life of Rookies in the Big Leagues," 6 June 2019 But beyond watching this case, the best mindset for navigating uncertain regulations is to consider how will things look after the fact? — Polina Marinova, Fortune, "Term Sheet -- Wednesday, June 5," 5 June 2019 Sudanese men and a child headed to a mosque navigate a roadblock set by protesters on a main street in the Sudanese capital Khartoum to stop military vehicles from driving through the area on Wednesday, June 5, 2019. — Fox News, "The Latest: Sudanese generals say they want to resume talks," 5 June 2019 For those who may question the safety of such a project, the company released a video showing one of the trucks navigating its way through a major storm without disengaging its self-driving system. — Drew Dorian, Car and Driver, "U.S. Postal Service Testing Mail Transport in Self-Driving Semi Trucks," 24 May 2019 Many brave people have publicly shared stories about their experiences navigating mental health conditions. — Carolyn Kylstra, SELF, "Mental Health Awareness Means Talking About All Types of Mental Illness," 29 Mar. 2019 This mouse is designed to fit comfortably in your hand and quickly respond to your touch, with thumb buttons and a scroll wheel to help navigate. — Alexandria Haslam, PCWorld, "Upgrade your keyboard, mouse, and webcam for cheap in Amazon's Logitech blowout sale," 26 Sep. 2018 At a moment when art might help the narrator navigate toward emotional realization, Xi’s stiff, dead dogs don’t actually enlighten. — Walton Muyumba, latimes.com, "Detachment and dreaming in 'My Year of Rest and Relaxation' by Ottessa Moshfegh," 12 July 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.