southwest

1 of 3

adverb

south·​west sau̇th-ˈwest 

nautical sau̇-ˈwest

: to, toward, or in the southwest

southwest

2 of 3

noun

1

a

: the general direction between south and west

b

: the point midway between the south and west compass points

2

Southwest : regions or countries lying to the southwest of a specified or implied point of orientation

especially : the southwestern part of the U.S.

southwest

3 of 3

adjective

1

: coming from the southwest

a southwest wind

2

: situated toward or at the southwest

the southwest corner

Examples of southwest in a Sentence

Adverb

It's about 80 miles southwest of here.

Noun

A mountain range is in the southwest of the country.

These plants grow in the Southwest.

Adjective

the southwest corner of the building

Recent Examples on the Web

Adverb

Miami Executive Airport is located about 20 miles southwest of downtown Miami. — Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 4 Nov. 2026

The earthquake's epicenter was approximately 2 miles southwest of Brawley and occurred at a depth of 10 miles. — Ca Earthquake Bot, Sacbee.com, 2 Nov. 2026

Noun

In Illinois' Joliet Township, southwest of Chicago, voters said no to a measure over whether the city council should approve construction of AI data centers. — Spencer Kimball,garrett Downs,dan Mangan,kevin Breuninger,justin Papp, CNBC, 4 Nov. 2026

Robeson County is about a 100-mile drive southwest from downtown Raleigh. — Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 2 Nov. 2026

Adjective

Folsom City Council 3rd District In Folsom’s 3rd District, which covers the southwest portion of the city and covers most of the newer developments south of Highway 50, incumbent Sarah Aquino is running against Jag Nagendra. — Daniel Lempres, Sacbee.com, 4 Nov. 2026

The flooding response in southwest Colorado is another example of that expanding mission. — Brian Maass, CBS News, 3 Nov. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun

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

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing southwest

• south-southwest
• southwest by south
• southwest by west
• west-southwest

Rhymes for southwest

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

Kids Definition

southwest

1 of 3 adverb

south·​west sau̇th-ˈwest 

nautical sau̇-ˈwest

: to or toward the southwest

southwest

2 of 3 noun

1

: the direction between south and west

2

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

southwest

3 of 3 adjective

1

: coming from the southwest

a southwest wind

2

: situated toward or at the southwest

the southwest corner