brújula

compass

noun BROO-hoo-lah Rare

Origin: From Old Italian bussola, 'small box'.

Usage Note

Brújula is feminine and refers specifically to the magnetic direction-finding instrument. Do not confuse it with compás, which means a musical beat or a drawing compass (the tool for drawing circles). The idiom perder la brújula means to lose one's bearings or sense of direction, literally and figuratively.

Examples

"Necesitamos una brújula para orientarnos."

Natural Translation

We need a compass to find our way.

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