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magnetic compass

American

noun

a compass having a magnetized needle generally in line with the magnetic poles of the earth.

magnetic compass British

noun

a compass containing a magnetic needle pivoted in a horizontal plane, that indicates the direction of magnetic north at points on the earth's surface

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Hatchlings come equipped with a magnetic compass that helps them maintain direction, and a magnetic map that provides location information essential for successful navigation.

From Science Daily • Nov. 22, 2025

Songbirds that migrate at night calibrate their magnetic compass to the setting sun, then use the stars as a compass.

From Salon • Apr. 15, 2025

The magnetic compass also came to Europe in the fifteenth century, making its way from China where it was guiding ships by 1100 CE.

From Textbooks • Dec. 14, 2022

Given that the birds’ magnetic compass is light-dependent, a prediction of Schulten’s hypothesis is that their eyes play a part in the magnetic sensory system.

From Scientific American • Mar. 15, 2022

Before we were allowed aboard the Rena, Dad delivered a series of lectures about navigation, tides, the magnetic compass, seamanship, rope-splicing, right-of-way, and nautical terminology.

From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023