dead reckoning

noun

1

: the determination without the aid of celestial observations of the position of a ship or aircraft from the record of the courses sailed or flown, the distance made, and the known or estimated drift

2

: guesswork

dead reckon verb

Examples of dead reckoning in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

To gauge longitude, by contrast, requires dead reckoning. —The Conversation, 14 May 2025

Born in Marblehead, Mass., Ellen Creesy learned how to pilot a vessel from her father, who also taught her the rudiments of navigation: dead reckoning and how to read a nautical chart. —Gary Kamiya, San Francisco Chronicle, 4 Feb. 2022

But for longitude, navigators had to rely on dead reckoning that was subject to errors. —Tim Bajarin, Forbes, 28 Apr. 2021

There is also straightforward dead reckoning and inertial navigation. —The Physics Arxiv Blog, Discover Magazine, 25 Mar. 2021

The researchers modeled the animals’ behavior using a variety of math ideas and the navigational concept of dead reckoning. —Caroline Delbert, Popular Mechanics, 19 Mar. 2021

Yoni Nova Kusumawan, had to rely on dead reckoning—using the STS-50’s trackline and rate of speed to estimate where and when to intercept it. —Tristram Korten, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 Aug. 2020

Known as dead reckoning, the system didn't use satellites. —Larry Printz, Ars Technica, 24 June 2020

Word History

First Known Use

1613, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for dead reckoning

• beckoning

Kids Definition

dead reckoning

noun

: calculation of the position of a ship or aircraft from the distance it has covered and the direction it has traveled without taking observations of the sun, stars, or moon