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

Northwest : 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

Showers and thunderstorms could return on Wednesday, with a few light showers brushing far northwest Missouri and northeast Kansas. — Kansas City Star, 22 July 2026

Bertha is drifting slowly but is expected to move northwest tonight before tracking near or along the northern Gulf Coast over the next several days. — Brandi D. Addison, USA Today, 20 July 2026

Adjective

The agency issued an air quality alert through July 17 for east-central, central, west-central, southeast, north-central, northwest and northeast Minnesota. — Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 17 July 2026

Grubbs grew up in a northwest suburb called Marietta, before the sprawl of Atlanta crept in. — Hanna Rosin, The Atlantic, 16 July 2026

Noun

Key Facts The July 22, 2028, total solar eclipse sees a path of totality — the moon’s shadow — race across Australia from northwest to southeast before passing directly over Sydney. — Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026

Steering currents are very weak, so Tropical Depression Two will continue moving slowly over the next couple of days to the north-northwest. — Meteorologist Melissa Nord, CNN Money, 19 July 2026

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

Rhymes for northwest

• abreast
• accessed
• addressed
• appressed
• armrest
• arrest
• assessed
• attest
• backrest
• behest
• bequest
• caressed

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