1
: coming from the northwest
a northwest wind
2
: situated toward or at the northwest
the northwest corner
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
Kayla Jimenez, USA TODAY, 17 May 2024
The retired school bus was carrying about 53 migrant farmworkers to a job at a watermelon field about 80 miles northwest of Orlando.
—Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 16 May 2024
The preliminary investigation indicates the single-engine aircraft ran out of fuel and crashed about nine miles northwest of the Cleburne Airport, Texas Department of Public Safety officials said in a news release.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 16 May 2024
Whitsunday, Queensland, is a region along the northeastern coast of Australia, about 1,500 miles northwest of Sydney.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 15 May 2024
Shortly before midnight Saturday, Stark, who lived in Milwaukee, was believed to be driving northwest on West Appleton Avenue and attempted a left turn onto West Burleigh Street, near the Lincoln Memorial Cemetery, according to police and the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office.
—Elliot Hughes, Journal Sentinel, 13 May 2024
Note that the fire road starts to wind northwest after about 0.3 miles; do not continue walking straight on it.
—Maura Fox, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 May 2024
Riparian health:Why river advocates say Arizona's upper Verde should earn 'Wild and Scenic' protections
Arundo on the Tanque Verde in Tucson
In Pima County, an organization is working with a crew of volunteers to clear out Arundo from the creeks northwest of Tucson.
—Trilce Estrada Olvera, The Arizona Republic, 10 May 2024
The first tornado touched down at 3 p.m., a mile northwest of Polkville in Cleveland County, and traveled 22 miles through Cherryville in Gaston County before lifting in woods at 3:44 p.m., an NWS storm damage survey team found.
—Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 9 May 2024
Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 17 May 2024
In the film, the swathe of northwest Saudi Arabia that is becoming a burgeoning local film production hub stands in for Najran, a city in southwestern Saudi Arabia near the Yemen border.
—Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 17 May 2024
Froedtert has two other primary care offices within Milwaukee's city limits: the McKinley Health Center, at 1271 N. Sixth St., in downtown Milwaukee, and the Good Hope Health Center, at 7208 N. 76th St., on the city's northwest side.
—Sarah Volpenhein, Journal Sentinel, 14 May 2024
They have been spotted around Birmingham, Montgomery and Huntsville, near Scottsboro and Gadsden along the Alabama-Georgia border, and near Florence and Sheffield in northwest Alabama.
—Emily Deletter, USA TODAY, 8 May 2024
Blue jeans were made with perpendicular stitches in northwest Italy, while denim was woven in chevron patterns in southern France.
—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 May 2024
That story revolves around an ancient civilization that settled in the inhospitable terrain of northwest New Mexico between 850 and 1250 and built Chaco Canyon, a breathtaking hub of culture and trade home to about 10,000 Puebloan people.
—Lois Alter Mark, Travel + Leisure, 6 May 2024
The entrances are located at the northeast and northwest sides of the campus, referred to as the McCarthy and McClintock entrances.
—Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 3 May 2024
One draft study of wastewater samples in a northwest Texas town found that signs of H5N1 have surged in sewers, but also that emergency room trends in the area were declining at the same time.
—Alexander Tin, CBS News, 3 May 2024
Paloma Chavez, Sacramento Bee, 20 May 2024
Another dog was suspected of being poisoned near Imnaha, which is northwest of the recreation area.
—Helena Wegner, Idaho Statesman, 17 May 2024
Image Downed transmission in Cypress, Texas, northwest of Houston.
—The New York Times, New York Times, 17 May 2024
Wixom is about a 35-mile drive northwest of Detroit.
—Mike Stunson, Kansas City Star, 16 May 2024
Winding Creek is settled around the Pleasant Grove Creek running west to northwest and surrounded by illustrious oak trees.
—Bang Advertising Staff and Correspondents, The Mercury News, 7 May 2024
The 16-year-old remains at the Suwannee Correctional Institution Annex, northwest of Gainesville, state prison records show.
—Omar Rodríguez Ortiz, Miami Herald, 8 May 2024
About a 20-minute drive northwest of A-Bar Ag Enterprises, at the Save Mart in Los Banos, a worker seemed puzzled when asked if the store carried local asparagus.
—Cindy Carcamo, Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2024
Ventura is about a 70-mile drive northwest from Los Angeles.
—Don Sweeney, Sacramento Bee, 7 May 2024
Adverb
Middle school educator Jeffrey Lee is the only Black male English teacher at his school, which serves about 815 students northwest of Philadelphia.
—Kayla Jimenez, USA TODAY, 17 May 2024
The retired school bus was carrying about 53 migrant farmworkers to a job at a watermelon field about 80 miles northwest of Orlando.
—Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 16 May 2024
The preliminary investigation indicates the single-engine aircraft ran out of fuel and crashed about nine miles northwest of the Cleburne Airport, Texas Department of Public Safety officials said in a news release.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 16 May 2024
Whitsunday, Queensland, is a region along the northeastern coast of Australia, about 1,500 miles northwest of Sydney.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 15 May 2024
Shortly before midnight Saturday, Stark, who lived in Milwaukee, was believed to be driving northwest on West Appleton Avenue and attempted a left turn onto West Burleigh Street, near the Lincoln Memorial Cemetery, according to police and the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office.
—Elliot Hughes, Journal Sentinel, 13 May 2024
Note that the fire road starts to wind northwest after about 0.3 miles; do not continue walking straight on it.
—Maura Fox, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 May 2024
Riparian health:Why river advocates say Arizona's upper Verde should earn 'Wild and Scenic' protections
Arundo on the Tanque Verde in Tucson
In Pima County, an organization is working with a crew of volunteers to clear out Arundo from the creeks northwest of Tucson.
—Trilce Estrada Olvera, The Arizona Republic, 10 May 2024
The first tornado touched down at 3 p.m., a mile northwest of Polkville in Cleveland County, and traveled 22 miles through Cherryville in Gaston County before lifting in woods at 3:44 p.m., an NWS storm damage survey team found.
—Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 9 May 2024
Adjective
In the wake of devastating tornadoes that cost at least two people their lives and many more people their homes, Bryan, who is from Oologah in northwest Oklahoma, decided to help.
—Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 17 May 2024
In the film, the swathe of northwest Saudi Arabia that is becoming a burgeoning local film production hub stands in for Najran, a city in southwestern Saudi Arabia near the Yemen border.
—Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 17 May 2024
Froedtert has two other primary care offices within Milwaukee's city limits: the McKinley Health Center, at 1271 N. Sixth St., in downtown Milwaukee, and the Good Hope Health Center, at 7208 N. 76th St., on the city's northwest side.
—Sarah Volpenhein, Journal Sentinel, 14 May 2024
They have been spotted around Birmingham, Montgomery and Huntsville, near Scottsboro and Gadsden along the Alabama-Georgia border, and near Florence and Sheffield in northwest Alabama.
—Emily Deletter, USA TODAY, 8 May 2024
Blue jeans were made with perpendicular stitches in northwest Italy, while denim was woven in chevron patterns in southern France.
—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 May 2024
That story revolves around an ancient civilization that settled in the inhospitable terrain of northwest New Mexico between 850 and 1250 and built Chaco Canyon, a breathtaking hub of culture and trade home to about 10,000 Puebloan people.
—Lois Alter Mark, Travel + Leisure, 6 May 2024
The entrances are located at the northeast and northwest sides of the campus, referred to as the McCarthy and McClintock entrances.
—Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 3 May 2024
One draft study of wastewater samples in a northwest Texas town found that signs of H5N1 have surged in sewers, but also that emergency room trends in the area were declining at the same time.
—Alexander Tin, CBS News, 3 May 2024
Noun
Prescott is about a 100-mile drive northwest of Phoenix.
—Paloma Chavez, Sacramento Bee, 20 May 2024
Another dog was suspected of being poisoned near Imnaha, which is northwest of the recreation area.
—Helena Wegner, Idaho Statesman, 17 May 2024
Image Downed transmission in Cypress, Texas, northwest of Houston.
—The New York Times, New York Times, 17 May 2024
Wixom is about a 35-mile drive northwest of Detroit.
—Mike Stunson, Kansas City Star, 16 May 2024
Winding Creek is settled around the Pleasant Grove Creek running west to northwest and surrounded by illustrious oak trees.
—Bang Advertising Staff and Correspondents, The Mercury News, 7 May 2024
The 16-year-old remains at the Suwannee Correctional Institution Annex, northwest of Gainesville, state prison records show.
—Omar Rodríguez Ortiz, Miami Herald, 8 May 2024
About a 20-minute drive northwest of A-Bar Ag Enterprises, at the Save Mart in Los Banos, a worker seemed puzzled when asked if the store carried local asparagus.
—Cindy Carcamo, Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2024
Ventura is about a 70-mile drive northwest from Los Angeles.
—Don Sweeney, Sacramento Bee, 7 May 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'northwest.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near northwest
Cite this Entry
“Northwest.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/northwest. Accessed 23 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
northwest
1 of 3 adverb
north·west
nȯrth-ˈwest 
nautical
nȯr-ˈwest
: to or toward the northwest
northwest
2 of 3 noun1
: 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 adjective1
: 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
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