o·ri·en·teer·ing (ôr??-?n-tîr??ng, -?n-)n. The use of map and compass to find a way through unfamiliar territory, especially when practiced as a competitive sport.[Alteration of Swedish orientering, from orientera, to orient, from French orienter, from orient, east; see orient.]o?ri·en·teer? n.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.orienteering (???r??n?t??r??) n (Individual Sports, other than specified) a sport in which contestants race on foot over a course consisting of checkpoints found with the aid of a map and a compass[C20: from Swedish orientering; compare orient]Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014o?ri?en?teer?ing (??r i ?n?t??r ??, ?o?r-) n. a sport in which competitors navigate unfamiliar terrain and locate checkpoints with the aid of a map and compass. [1945?50; alter. of Swedish orientering] Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.