circumnavigate
/,sə:kəm'nævi'geiʃn/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb:
- To travel completely around something, especially the Earth, by sea or air: The core meaning of "circumnavigate" is to make a complete journey around a globe or a large landmass, typically across oceans or through the air.
- To go around; to circumvent: In a broader or more figurative sense, it can mean to go around an obstacle or issue.
Usage Examples
- Verb:
- The explorer planned to circumnavigate the globe in a hot air balloon.
- Magellan's expedition was the first to circumnavigate the Earth.
- To avoid the traffic, we had to circumnavigate the entire city.
Advanced Usage
- Figurative Use: Used to describe avoiding a problem or issue indirectly.
- The politician skillfully circumnavigated the reporter's difficult question.
- Historical/Literary Context: Often associated with historic voyages of exploration.
- The quest to circumnavigate the Cape of Good Hope was crucial for trade routes.
Variants and Related Words
- Circumnavigation (n): The act or instance of circumnavigating.
- The circumnavigation took three years to complete.
- Circumnavigator (n): A person who circumnavigates.
- He is a famous circumnavigator and author.
Synonyms
- Circle: To move in a circle around.
- Orbit: To travel around a celestial body.
- Round: To go or pass around.
- Circumvent: To find a way around, often used for problems or rules.
Related Phrasal Verbs/Constructions
(This word does not commonly form phrasal verbs. Its meaning is contained within the single verb form.)
Related Idioms
- To sail around the world: A more common phrase with a similar literal meaning to circumnavigate.
- Their dream was to sail around the world.
- To go the long way around: An idiom for taking an indirect route, similar to the figurative use of circumnavigate.
- We had to go the long way around because the bridge was out.
Verb
- travel around, either by plane or ship
- We compassed the earth