navy
pronunciation
How to pronounce navy in British English:
UK [ˈneɪvi]
How to pronounce navy in American English:
US [ˈneɪvi]
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- Noun:
- an organization of military naval forces
- a dark shade of blue
Word Origin
- navy
- navy: [14] Latin nāvis ‘ship’ is the ultimate source of navy. In post-classical times it spawned an offspring nāvia ‘fleet’, which passed into English via Old French navie. Other Latin derivatives of nāvis were nāvālis, source of English naval [16], and the verb nāvigāre ‘manage a ship’, from which English gets navigate [16] (navvy [19] originated as a colloquial abbreviation for navigator, a term applied to someone who dug ‘navigation canals’).In medieval Latin nāvis was applied to the central part of a church, from the passing resemblance in shape to a ship, and the word was anglicized as nave [17]. Nāvis was related to Greek naus ‘ship’, whose contributions to English include nautical [16], nautilus [17], nausea [16] (etymologically ‘seasickness’), and, somewhat surprisingly, noise.=> nausea, nautical, navigate, noise
- navy (n.)
- early 14c., "fleet of ships," especially for purposes of war, from Old French navie "fleet; ship," from Latin navigia, plural of navigium "vessel, boat," from navis "ship" (see naval). Meaning "a nation's collective, organized sea power" is from 1530s. The Old English words were sciphere (usually of Viking invaders) and scipfierd (usually of the home defenses). Navy blue was the color of the British naval uniform. Navy bean attested from 1856, so called because they were grown to be used by the Navy.
Example
- 1. The u.s. navy has sent a guided missile destroyer .
- 2. When I played cassio in othello I imagined what it would be like to be a lieutenant in the venetian navy in 1604 .
- 3. Its navy has conducted boisterous war games .
- 4. Beijing is building a powerful navy .
- 5. India 's navy chases somali pirates .