nautical star
noun
any bright star used by sailors to navigate or to take their bearings.
nautical stars
-
pluralof nautical star.plural
The grammatical form denoting more than one person, place, thing, or idea.
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.
A name for the nautical stars, which, from their positions having been very exactly ascertained, are used for determining time.
From The Sailor's Word-Book An Alphabetical Digest of Nautical Terms, including Some More Especially Military and Scientific, but Useful to Seamen; as well as Archaisms of Early Voyagers, etc. by Sir Edward Belcher
Fomalhaut is one of the important "nautical stars," and its position was long ago carefully computed for the benefit of mariners.
From Astronomy with an Opera-glass A Popular Introduction to the Study of the Starry Heavens with the Simplest of Optical Instruments by Garrett Putman Serviss
