CIRCUMNAVIGATE Synonyms: 36 Similar and Opposite Words

circumnavigate

verb

ˌsər-kəm-ˈna-və-ˌgāt

Definition of circumnavigate

as in to traverse

to travel completely around the first ship to circumnavigate the globe

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in to bypass

to avoid by going around we can circumnavigate the traffic jam if we take the next exit

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of circumnavigate Chicagoan Bill Pinkney sailed into Boston Harbor having circumnavigated the globe all by himself, the third American and the first Black person to have accomplished the feat by taking a route that included the five southernmost capes. — Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 9 June 2026 The first Global Ocean Sampling Expedition, which used Venter’s own yacht, circumnavigated the globe between 2005 and 2006. — Claire Cameron, Scientific American, 30 Apr. 2026 The Apollo 8 photo, however, showed Earth reemerging into view, rather than disappearing, as astronauts Bill Anders, Frank Borman and Jim Lovell circumnavigated the moon. — Denise Chow, NBC news, 7 Apr. 2026 During the 1969 Apollo 10 mission — the one in which Thomas Stafford, John Young and Eugene Cernan circumnavigated the moon — Stafford reported back to mission control on Day 6 of the mission that a piece of waste was floating through the cabin, according to once-confidential government documents. — Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 4 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for circumnavigate

Recent Examples of Synonyms for circumnavigate

Verb

The Firebrand and the First Lady demonstrates that the early civil rights movement was built on a foundation of deep, complicated, long-term relationships which traversed the boundaries of both race and class.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 2 Oct. 2026
The vessel will navigate south through the narrow Strait of Malacca, round the turbulent waters of the Cape of Good Hope, and traverse the open expanse of the South Atlantic before dropping anchor off Bahia’s coast.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 29 Sep. 2026

Definition of traverse

Verb

The priority status allows developers to bypass local regulatory plans, according to Soóki-Tóth.

— Lucy Handley, CNBC, 7 Oct. 2026
In particular, both Russia and Iran have repeatedly flagged Starlink as a major threat since it's been aiding Ukraine and helping local Iranians bypass internet censorship.

— Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of bypass

Verb

Whether or not Hal was right to entice Zoe (upon whose shoulders the carnage ultimately falls), his decision to circumvent the Guardians’ chain of command is what ultimately leads to countless deaths and his imprisonment for reckless endangerment.

— Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026
Fragmentation has allowed many powerful figures to get their message across by circumventing traditional media outlets whose questions many CEOs and politicians don’t want to answer.

— Max Tani, semafor.com, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of circumvent

Verb

With the late morning liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Watkins became the first Black woman to lead a crew to orbit.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 2 Oct. 2026
The planetary system is among the most studied in our galaxy, and its star is known to host 30 orbiting comets and a giant disk of dust and debris, which NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope photographed in detail in 2015.

— Jacopo Prisco, CNN Money, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of orbit

Verb

Rates actually continued to increase after the Society of Surgical Oncology adopted the guidelines in 2016, even though patients who received the biopsy were not more likely to survive or avoid recurrence.

— Allessandra DiCorato, STAT, 8 Oct. 2026
Clapp said the firm focuses on avoiding highly leveraged companies and floating-rate debt, instead favoring investments with dependable cash flows to support clients over the long term.

— Jessica Dickler, CNBC, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of avoid

Verb

Earlier, the Houthis seized several villages and areas on Taiz's outskirts, paving the way for the rebels to encircle Taiz, Yemen's third-largest city.

— AHMED AL-HAJ, Arkansas Online, 6 Oct. 2026
On Sunday, the group effectively encircled the key city of Taiz after cutting the main supply route linking it to the interim government capital of Aden.

— Frank Andrews, CBS News, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of encircle

Verb

Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappé, the only other player to cross the nine-figure threshold, lands in the third spot at $105 million.

— Justin Birnbaum, Sportico.com, 6 Oct. 2026
Video circulating on social media showed a drone striking the bridge and exploding as vehicles crossed.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of cross

Browse Nearby Words

circumlocutory

circumnavigate

circumnavigated

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“Circumnavigate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/circumnavigate. Accessed 10 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of circumnavigate

verb

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