v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Navigated p. pr. & vb. n. Navigating. ] [ L. navigatus, p. p. of navigare, v.t. & i.; navis ship + agere to move, direct. See Nave, and Agent. ] 1. To journey by water; to go in a vessel or ship; to perform the duties of a navigator; to use the waters as a highway or channel for commerce or communication; to sail. [ 1913 Webster ]

The Phenicians navigated to the extremities of the Western Ocean. Arbuthnot. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To direct or operate a vehicle, especially a ship or aircraft. [ PJC ]

3. To pass through, over, or around; -- used especially of a course having obstacles; as, to navigate around all the randomly scattered tables to the far side of the room. [ PJC ]

v. t. 1. To pass over in ships; to sail over or on; as, to navigate the Atlantic. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To steer, direct, or manage in sailing; to conduct (ships) upon the water by the art or skill of seamen; as, to navigate a ship. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To pass through, over, or around; -- used especially of a course having obstacles; as, to navigate all the randomly scattered tables to the far side of the room. [ PJC ]

n. [ L. navigatio: cf. F. navigation. ] 1. The act of navigating; the act of passing on water in ships or other vessels; the state of being navigable. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (a) The science or art of conducting ships or vessels from one place to another, including, more especially, the method of determining a ship's position, course, distance passed over, etc., on the surface of the globe, by the principles of geometry and astronomy. (b) The management of sails, rudder, etc.; the mechanics of traveling by water; seamanship. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Ships in general. [ Poetic ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Aerial navigation, the act or art of sailing or floating in the air, as by means of airplanes or ballons; aviation; aeronautic. --
Inland navigation,
Internal navigation, navigation on rivers, inland lakes, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. of or pertaining to navigation; used in navigation; as, navigational aids. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. One who navigates or sails; esp., one who direct the course of a ship, or one who is skillful in the art of navigation; also, a book which teaches the art of navigation; as, Bowditch's Navigator. [ 1913 Webster ]