na·vic·u·lar
nə-ˈvi-kyə-lər 
1
: shaped like a boat
a navicular bone
2
: of, relating to, or involving a navicular bone
navicular disease
: a navicular bone:
a
: one situated on the big-toe side of the tarsus in humans
called also scaphoid
b
c
: one situated in the hoof of a horse behind the coffin bone
Examples of navicular in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 28 Sep. 2025
That’s why the most common locations for stress reactions are in the bones of the feet, such as the calcaneus, fifth metatarsal, sesamoid, talar neck and tarsal navicular, and in the bones of the legs, such as the anterior tibial cortex, femoral neck and femoral head.
—Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
David Woods, The Indianapolis Star, 4 Nov. 2021
See All Example Sentences for navicular
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.
Adjective
That broke the navicular bone in her left foot, forcing her to withdraw from the trials and evaporating her hopes to make the Tokyo Games.
—Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 28 Sep. 2025
That’s why the most common locations for stress reactions are in the bones of the feet, such as the calcaneus, fifth metatarsal, sesamoid, talar neck and tarsal navicular, and in the bones of the legs, such as the anterior tibial cortex, femoral neck and femoral head.
—Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
Noun
The navicular is covered by cartilage and lacks a rich blood supply, causing a slow recovery process.
—David Woods, The Indianapolis Star, 4 Nov. 2021
See All Example Sentences for navicular
Cite this Entry
“Navicular.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/navicular. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
navicular
1 of 2 noun
na·vic·u·lar
nə-ˈvik-yə-lər
variants
or
: a boat-shaped bone:
a
: the one of the seven tarsal bones of the human foot that is situated on the big-toe side between the talus and the cuneiform bones
called also scaphoid
b
c
: a small bone enclosed within the hoof of the horse behind the junction of the coffin bone and short pastern bone
navicular
2 of 2 adjective1
: resembling or having the shape of a boat
navicular cells
2
: of, relating to, or involving a navicular bone
navicular fractures
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share