From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Binnacle \Bin"na*cle\, noun [For bittacle, corrupted (perh. by influence of bin) fr. Pg. bitacola binnacle, fr. L. habitaculum dwelling place, fr. habitare to dwell. See {Habit}, and cf. {Bittacle}.] (Naut.) A case or box placed near the helmsman, containing the compass of a ship, and a light to show it at night. --Totten.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
noun
1: a nonmagnetic housing for a ship's compass (usually in front of the helm)
Define.com is a registered nonprofit corporation dedicated solely to the global public interest and the advancement of humanity. It belongs to all of us who have a desire to promote electronic democracy, science, creativity, imagination, reason, critical thinking, peace, race and gender equality, civil rights, equal access to education, personal liberty, free speech, animal rights, compassionate and nonviolent parenting, social and economic justice, global monetary reform, Secular Humanism, cognitive liberty and a permanent cessation of The War on Drugs.
Let's see what we can do if we put our heads together.
0