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 shooting occurred around 5:38 a.m. at 3010 South Cross Street, about a mile northwest of the Interstate 30 interchange with Interstates 530 and 440. —Daniel McFadin, Arkansas Online, 5 May 2025

The Alpha rocket took off from Vandenberg Space Force Base about 140 miles northwest of Los Angeles at 6:37 am PDT (9:37 am EDT; 13:37 UTC), one day after Firefly called off a launch attempt due to a technical problem with ground support equipment. —ArsTechnica, 29 Apr. 2025

Adjective

In Minnesota, the Pollution Control Agency issued alerts for areas including southwest, central, and northwest regions. —Joe Edwards, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 May 2025

The week kicked off with a high around 69 and northwest winds around 17 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph in the afternoon, according the National Weather Service. —Ashley Fredde, Idaho Statesman, 5 May 2025

Noun

Nineveh is near modern-day Mosul, a roughly 250-mile drive northwest from Baghdad and near the borders with Syria and Turkey. —Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 14 May 2025

As of May 14, the pup was still available for adoption in Marshall, a roughly 20-mile drive northwest from the mountain town of Asheville. —Simone Jasper, Charlotte Observer, 14 May 2025

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