Word.ws English Dictionary

compass

Syllables: com·pass/ˈkʌm.pəs/

compass noun: a magnetic or electronic device used to determine the cardinal directions (usually magnetic or true north).

compass: a magnetic or electronic device used to determine the cardinal directions (usually magnetic or true...
Image: Jacek Halicki, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun

compass (plural compasses)

  1. A magnetic or electronic device used to determine the cardinal directions (usually magnetic or true north).
    • [H]ow many Seas to our fore-fathers impaſſable, for want of the Compaſſe?1625, [Samuel] Purchas, “Of the Improvement of Nauigation in Later Times, […]”, in Purchas His Pilgrimes. […], 1st part, London: […] William Stansby for Henrie Fetherstone, […], →OCLC, 2nd book, § I...
    • 1689/1690, John Locke, On improvement of understanding
      He that […] first discovered the use of the compass […] did more for the propagation of knowledge […] than those who built workhouses.
  2. A pair of compasses (a device used to draw circular arcs and transfer length measurements).
    • to fix one foot of their compass wherever they please1701, Jonathan Swift, chapter 5, in A Discourse of the Contests and Dissensions between the Nobles and the Commons in Athens and Rome
  3. The range of notes of a musical instrument or voice.
    • You would sound me from my lowest note to the top of my compass.c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac...
  4. (obsolete) A space within limits; an area.
    • In going up the Missisippi ^([sic]), we meet with nothing remarkable before we come to the Detour aux Anglois, the English Reach: in that part the river takes a large compass.1763, M. Le Page Du Pratz, History of Louisiana, PG, page 47
    • Animals, in their generation, are wiser than the sons of men but their wisdom is confined to a few particulars, and lies in a very narrow compass.1711, Joseph Addison, The Spectator
  5. (obsolete) An enclosing limit; a boundary, a circumference.
    • within the compass of an encircling wall
  6. Moderate bounds, limits of truth; moderation; due limits; used with within.
    • In two hundred years before (I speak within compass), no such commission had been executed.c. 1610, John Davies, Historical Tracts
    • "Saints!" she cried, "but what a noise you keep! Can you not speak in compass?"1883, Robert Louis Stevenson, “In Mine Enemies' House”, in The Black Arrow
  7. (formal) Synonym of scope.
    • the compass of his argumentc. 1806–1809 (date written), William Wordsworth, “(please specify the page)”, in The Excursion, being a Portion of The Recluse, a Poem, London: […] Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown, […]...
    • There is a truth and falsehood in all propositions on this subject, and a truth and falsehood, which lie not beyond the compass of human understanding.1748, David Hume, Enquiries concerning the human understanding and concerning the principles of moral, Oxford University Press, published 1973, section 8
    Synonyms:
    scope
  8. (obsolete) Range, reach.
    • Lou's not Times foole, though roſie lips and cheeks
      VVithin his bending ſickles compaſſe come,
      Loue alters not with his breefe houres and vveekes,
      But beares it out euen to the edge of doome:
      If this be error and vpon me proued,
      I neuer vvrit, nor no man euer loued.1609, William Shakespeare, “Sonnet 116”, in Shake-speares Sonnets. […], London: By G[eorge] Eld for T[homas] T[horpe] and are to be sold by William Aspley, →OCLC, signature H, recto
    • Then when our powers in points of ſwords are ioin’d
      And cloſde in compaſſe of the killing bullet,
      Though ſtraite the paſſage and the port be made,
      That leads to Pallace of my brothers life,
      Proud is his fortune if we pierce it not.c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC...
  9. (obsolete) A passing round; circuit; circuitous course.
    • This day I breathed first; time is come round, / And where I did begin, there shall I end; / My life is run his compass.1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...
    • They fetched a compass of seven days' journey.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, 2 Kings iii:9
  10. A curved circular form.

Verb

compass (third-person singular simple present compasses, present participle compassing, simple past and past participle compassed)

  1. To surround; to encircle; to environ; to stretch round.
    • Now all the blessings
      Of a glad father compass thee about!1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published...
    • And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Genesis 2:13
  2. To go about or round entirely; to traverse.
    • So she goeth around the hill compassing.1828, Thomas Keightley, The Fairy Mythology, volume I, London: William Harrison Ainsworth, page 174
    Synonyms:
    cover, traverse
  3. (dated) To accomplish; to reach; to achieve; to obtain.
    • […] tho' theſe ſeem'd to be very unfit Inſtruments for compaſſing of that great Deſign for which they were then employ'd, becauſe of their Inability and Uncapacity in performing the Work ſo very great and important; […]1720, John Shaw, “Of Religion”, in The Fundamental Doctrines of the Church of England, […], volume I, London: […] George Strahan, […] William Mears, […], page 36
    • [...] they never find ways sufficient to compass that end.1763, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, translated by M. Nugent, Emilius; or, an essay on education, page 117
  4. (dated) To plot; to scheme (against someone).
    • That he plotted and compassed to raise Sedition and Rebellion [...]1600, R. Bagshaw, “The Arraignment and Judgement of Captain Thomas Lee”, in Cobbett's Complete Collection of State Trials, volume 1, published 1809, pages 1403–04
    • But it went beyond it by the loose construction of compassing to depose the King, …1794 November 1, Speech of Mr. Erskine in Behalf of Hardy, published in 1884, by Chauncey Allen Goodrich, in Select British Eloquence, page 719
    Synonyms:
    conspire, plot, scheme

Adverb

compass (comparative more compass, superlative most compass)

  1. (obsolete) In a circuit; round about.
    • [T]he Towne is impailed about halfe a mile compaſſe.1632, John Smith, “The Present Estate of New-Plimoth”, in Iohn [i.e., John] Smith, The Generall Historie of Virginia, New-England, and the Summer Isles: […], London: […] I[ohn] D[awson] and I[ohn]...
    • Near the same plot of ground, for about six yards compasse were digged up coals and incinerated substances, […]1658, Thomas Browne, “(please specify the page)”, in Hydriotaphia, Urne-buriall, […] Together with The Garden of Cyrus, […], London: […] Hen[ry] Brome […], →OCLC

compass meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

compass in Hindi

instrument to determine cardinal directions
क़ुतुबनुमा qutubnumā, दिक्सूचक diksūcak, कंपास kampās

compass in Tamil

instrument to determine cardinal directions
திசைகாட்டி ticaikāṭṭi

compass in Marathi

instrument to determine cardinal directions
होकायंत्र hokāyantra

compass in Urdu

instrument to determine cardinal directions
قُطْب نُما qutb numā, کَمْپاس kampās
More languagesFewer languages
compass in Bengali
কম্পাস kompaś
compass in Telugu
దిక్సూచి diksūci
compass in Malayalam
വടക്കുനോക്കിയന്ത്രം vaṭakkunōkkiyantraṁ
compass in Kannada
ದಿಕ್ಸೂಚಿ diksūci
compass in Punjabi
ਕੰਪਾਸ kampās
compass in Gujarati
હોકાયંત્ર hokāyantra
compass in Odia
ଦିଗନିର୍ଣ୍ଣୟକ ଯନ୍ତ୍ର diganirṇṇayaka jantra
compass in Sinhala
මාලිමාව mālimāwa
compass in Assamese
কম্পাছ kompas
compass in Nepali
कम्पास kampās
compass in Pashto
قطب نما qotab nama
compass in Tagalog
turubalani, bruhula
compass in Arabic
بُوصُّلَة būṣṣula
compass in Malay
kompas, pedoman
compass in Indonesian
kompas, padom
compass in Thai
เข็มทิศ kěm-tít, ขอบเขต kɔ̀ɔp-kèet, ความเข้าใจ kwaam-kâo-jai
compass in Vietnamese
la bàn
compass in Myanmar
ကွန်ပါ kwanpa, အိမ်မြှောင် imhmraung
Dhivehi
ސަމުގާ samugā

Examples of compass in a sentence

  • a glance at his compass would have shown him that a northerly course instead of an easterly could not be right1890, Wilhelm Westhofen, The Forth Bridge:
  • He was as if trying to get himself into the smallest possible compass.1913, D[avid] H[erbert] Lawrence, “Chapter 14”, in Sons and Lovers, London: Duckworth & Co. […], →OCLC:
  • How very commonly we hear it remarked that such and such thoughts are beyond the compass of words!1844, Edgar Allan Poe, Marginalia:
  • And its treatment of words is as nearly exhaustive as the compass of an abridged work permits.2003, Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th edition, Merriam-Webster, →ISBN, page 6a:

All 40 example sentences with compass

Synonyms of compass

7 more synonymsFewer synonyms

All synonyms of compass

Forms of compass

Noun
pluralcompasses
Verb
third-person singular presentcompasses
present participlecompassing
past participlecompassed
pastcompassed
Adverb
comparativemore compass
superlativemost compass

Plural of compass: compasses

Origin of compass

From Middle English compas (“a circle, circuit, limit, form, a mathematical instrument”), from Old French compas, from Medieval Latin compassus (“a circle, a circuit”), from Latin com- (“together”) + passus (“a pace, step, later a pass, way, route”); see pass, pace.

From Middle English compassen (“to go around, make a circuit, draw a circle, contrive, intend”), from Old French compasser; from the noun; see compass as a noun.

Words formed from compass

Phrases with compass

9 more phrasesFewer phrases

Questions about compass

What does compass mean?
Compass means a magnetic or electronic device used to determine the cardinal directions (usually magnetic or true north).
What is compass in Hindi?
Compass in Hindi is क़ुतुबनुमा (qutubnumā), दिक्सूचक (diksūcak), कंपास (kampās). See Compass meaning in Hindi.
How do you use compass in a sentence?
a glance at his compass would have shown him that a northerly course instead of an easterly could not be right
What part of speech is compass?
Compass can be a noun, a verb or an adverb.
How do you pronounce compass?
Compass is pronounced /ˈkʌm.pəs/.
What is the plural of compass?
The plural of compass is compasses.

Words near compass in the dictionary

  1. compartner
  2. compartners
  3. comparts
  4. compas
  5. compascuity
  6. compass
  7. compass cactus
  8. compass card
  9. compass cards
  10. compass deflection
  11. compass deflections

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: compass (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-us-compass.ogg.

Cite this entry: “compass.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/compass. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.