NAVY, noun [Gr. From to swim. To swim then is to move up and down.] 1. A fleet of ships; an assemblage of merchantmen, or so many as sail in company. The navy of Hiram brought gold from Ophir. 1 Kings 10:11. 2. The whole of the ships of war belonging to a nation or king. The navy of Great Britain is the defense of the kingdom and its commerce. This is the usual acceptation of the word.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI