northwest

1 of 3

adverb

north·​west nȯrth-ˈwest 

nautical

nȯr-ˈwest 

: to, toward, or in the northwest

northwest

2 of 3

adjective

1

: coming from the northwest

a northwest wind

2

: situated toward or at the northwest

the northwest corner

northwest

3 of 3

noun

1

a

: the general direction between north and west

b

: the point midway between the north and west compass points

2

capitalized : regions or countries lying to the northwest of a specified or implied point of orientation

Examples of northwest in a Sentence

Adverb

It's about 80 miles northwest of here.

I headed northwest on Route 1.

Adjective

the northwest corner of the building

Noun

A mountain range is in the northwest of the country.

We traveled throughout the Northwest.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adverb

Eureka is the largest coastal city between San Francisco and Portland, Oregon, and about 300 miles northwest of Sacramento. —Alaa Elassar, CNN, 14 Dec. 2024

The community is less than a mile northwest of Malibu Pier. —Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 10 Dec. 2024

Adjective

Annie—Terrier, Pit Bull Mix Annie has been waiting for her person to find her at the Best Friends Animal Society Pet Resource Center in northwest Arkansas since September 2024. —Stephan Pechdimaldji, Newsweek, 15 Dec. 2024

The interim prime minister, Al-Bashir, had been the head of a de facto administration created by Hayat Tahrir al Sham in Idlib, the opposition’s enclave in northwest Syria. —Albert Aji and Matthew Lee, Los Angeles Times, 13 Dec. 2024

Noun

Listen to this article Loading your audio article BISMARCK, N.D. — The North Dakota Industrial Commission voted on Thursday, Dec. 12, to allow millions of tons of carbon dioxide to be transported by pipeline and permanently stored underground northwest of Bismarck. —Peyton Haug, Twin Cities, 13 Dec. 2024

Residents within the zone – stretching from Davenport, California, northwest of Santa Cruz, to the Douglas Lane county line in Oregon – were urged to move off the water and beach and evacuate inland beyond tsunami hazard zones. —Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY, 7 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing northwest

• north-northwest
• northwest by north
• northwest by west
• the northwest
• west-northwest

Kids Definition

northwest

1 of 3 adverb

north·​west nȯrth-ˈwest 

nautical

nȯr-ˈwest 

: to or toward the northwest

northwest

2 of 3 noun

1

: the direction between north and west

2

capitalized : the regions or countries northwest of a point that is mentioned or understood

northwest

3 of 3 adjective

1

: coming from the northwest

a northwest wind

2

: placed or lying toward or at the northwest

the northwest corner

Geographical Definition

North West

geographical name

variants or Noordwes

ˌnȯrd-ˈwes 

ˌnȯrt-

province of the northern part of the Republic of South Africa bordering Botswana area 44,861 square miles (116,190 square kilometers), population 3,509,953