Crossword Genius

Align compass and sail along (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

range

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'align' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'compass and sail along' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'and' could be 'n' (common abbreviation for 'and') and 'n' is found in the answer.
The remaining letters 'rage' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for range that I've seen before include "Scope; line of mountains" , "area for stock" , "sight" , "Compass - scope" , "Compass, extent" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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