Etymology : Middle English navie, from Middle French, from Latin navigia ships, from navigare
Pronunciation : 'nA-vE
Function : noun
Date : 14th century
1. collection of battle ships; sea branch of the military, fighting unit equipped for sea warfare. navy\na"vy\ ; n.; pl. navies (#). [ of. navie, fr. l. navis ship. see:
nave of a church.].
2. a fleet of ships; an assemblage of merchantmen, or so many as sail in company. "the navy also of hiram, that brought gold from ophir." --1 kings x.
3. 2. the whole of the war vessels belonging to a nation or ruler, considered collectively; as, the navy of italy.
4. the officers and men attached to the war vessels of a nation; as, he belongs to the navy.navy bean. see:
bean.navy yard, a place set apart as a shore station for the use of the navy. it often contains all the mechanical and other appliences for building and equipping war vessels and training their crews.navy n.
5. an organization of military naval forces [syn: naval forces].
6. a dark shade of blue [syn: dark blue, navy blue].
7. A fleet of ships; an assemblage of merchantmen, or so many as sail in company.
8. The whole of the war vessels belonging to a nation or ruler, considered collectively; as, the navy of Italy.
9. The officers and men attached to the war vessels of a nation; as, he belongs to the navy. an organization of military naval forces.
10. 1. A country's navy consists of the people it employs to fight at sea, and the ships they use. Her own son was also in the Navy. a United States navy ship.
11. Something that is navy or navy-blue is very dark blue. I mostly wore black or navy trousers. a navy-blue blazer. Warships and craft of every kind maintained by a nation for fighting on, under, or over the sea. A large modern navy includes aircraft carriers, cruisers, destroyers, frigates, submarines, minesweepers and minelayers, gunboats, and various types of support, supply, and repair ships, as well as naval bases and ports. Naval ships are the chief means by which a nation extends sea power. Their two chief functions are to achieve sea control and sea denial. Control of the sea enables a nation and its allies to carry on maritime commerce, amphibious assaults, and other seaborne operations that may be essential in wartime. Denial of the sea deprives enemy merchant vessels and warships of safe navigation. See also U.S. Navy.