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

The aircraft was heading northwest from the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, to Grozny in Russia -- the capital city of Russia's Chechen Republic -- when the incident occurred. —David Brennan, ABC News, 31 Dec. 2024

Wednesday's highs will range from the lower 30s northwest to the upper 30s southeast. —Haadiza Ogwude, The Enquirer, 31 Dec. 2024

Adjective

The dangerous waves are caused by a long-period, large northwest swell generated by a storm system near Alaska. —David Faris, Newsweek, 27 Dec. 2024

Their Social Security payments couldn't cover the cost of any apartments in northwest Montana's Flathead Valley. —Aaron Bolton, NPR, 27 Dec. 2024

Noun

In 1970, Smithson traveled to the Great Salt Lake’s Rozel Point peninsula, northwest of Salt Lake City, and arranged 6,000 tons of local black basalt rock into a 1,500-foot-long, protruding line, which reaches into the lake and curls counterclockwise into a spiral. —Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 Dec. 2024

Looking for a unique Wisconsin gift this holiday season? Check out the new Butter Barn at Royal Guernsey Creamery just over an hour northwest of Milwaukee. —Claire Reid, Journal Sentinel, 18 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