circumnavigate

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circumnavigate

/ˌsə.kəmˈnæv.ɪ.ɡeɪt/ UK
/ˌsɝ.kəmˈnæv.ɪ.ɡeɪt/ US

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Latin circumnāvigātus, perfect passive participle of circumnāvigō (“sail round something, circumnavigate”), from circum (“about, around”) + nāvigō (“sail, navigate”), from nāvis (“ship”) + agō (“do”). By surface analysis, circum- + navigate.

verb circumnavigates · circumnavigating · circumnavigated

transitive To travel completely around somewhere or something (especially the Globe), especially by sail. We circumnavigated the Mediterranean.
Similar: compass, environ
transitive To circumvent or bypass. Rebel of the tournament: Saudi Arabia’s Malek Al Hawsawi, who circumnavigated Fifa’s ban on jewellery by keeping his ring in his mouth.
Similar: go around
intransitive To sail around the world. Patrick Childress, who solo circumnavigated on a Catalina 27 in 1982, stresses the value of eggs, which will keep at least six weeks if previously unrefrigerated and oiled with vegetable shortening.

Translations

Every language

verb to sail completely around something

Español	circunnavegar, bojar, bojear
Português	circum-navegar
Français	circumnaviguer
Deutsch	umsegeln, umschiffen, umfahren
Italiano	circumnavigare

verb to circumvent or bypass

Deutsch	umschiffen, umgehen

verb to sail around the world

Español	circunnavegar
Deutsch	die Welt umsegeln

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Cite this

MLA

"circumnavigate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/circumnavigate. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

circumnavigate. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/circumnavigate

Chicago

"circumnavigate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/circumnavigate.

BibTeX

@misc{circumnavigate_2026,
  title = {circumnavigate},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/circumnavigate},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}