southeast

1 of 3

adverb

south·​east sau̇th-ˈēst 

nautical sau̇-ˈēst

: to, toward, or in the southeast

southeast

2 of 3

noun

1

a

: the general direction between south and east

b

: the point midway between the south and east compass points

2

Southeast : regions or countries lying to the southeast of a specified or implied point of orientation

southeast

3 of 3

adjective

1

: coming from the southeast

a southeast wind

2

: situated toward or at the southeast

the southeast corner

Examples of southeast in a Sentence

Adverb

It's a few miles southeast of here.

Noun

A mountain range is in the southeast of the country.

Rain is moving into the Southeast.

He grew up in the Southeast.

Adjective

My office is in the southeast corner of the building.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adverb

The crash site is about a 30-mile drive southeast from uptown Charlotte. —Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 9 Mar. 2026

Hancock, about 50 miles southeast of El Paso. —Jaimie Ding, Los Angeles Times, 8 Mar. 2026

Noun

The incident led the FAA to close the airspace around Fort Hancock, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of El Paso. —Jaimie Ding, Fortune, 8 Mar. 2026

The property is located South of 119th Street and Division Street and southeast of 119th Street and Vincennes Avenue. —Addison Wright, Chicago Tribune, 8 Mar. 2026

Adjective

East northeast wind around 6 mph becoming southeast in the afternoon. —Katie Wiseman, IndyStar, 3 Mar. 2026

On Tuesday evening, for these locations, skies will likely be beautifully clear and moonlit thanks to a large dome of high pressure sitting over southeast New York. —Joe Rao, Space.com, 2 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

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

Phrases Containing southeast

• east-southeast
• southeast by east
• southeast by south
• south-southeast

Rhymes for southeast

• deceased
• decreased
• increased
• northeast
• policed
• released
• beast
• ceased
• creased
• east
• feast
• fleeced

Kids Definition

southeast

1 of 3 adverb

south·​east sau̇-ˈthēst 

nautical sau̇-ˈēst

: to or toward the southeast

southeast

2 of 3 noun

1

: the direction between south and east

2

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

southeast

3 of 3 adjective

1

: situated toward or at the southeast

the southeast corner

2

: coming from the southeast

a southeast wind