south·west | \ sau̇th-ˈwest 
, nautical sau̇-ˈwest \
, nautical sau̇-ˈwest \Definition of southwest
(Entry 1 of 3)
: to, toward, or in the southwest
southwest
nounDefinition of southwest (Entry 2 of 3)
1a : the general direction between south and west
b : the point midway between the south and west compass points
2 capitalized : regions or countries lying to the southwest of a specified or implied point of orientation especially : the southwestern part of the U.S.
southwest
adjectiveDefinition of southwest (Entry 3 of 3)
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
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Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb The area hit by the quake was about 160 miles southwest of the city of Palu, where a devastating earthquake and tsunami struck in 2018, liquefying part of the city and killing thousands.
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New York Times, "At Least 46 Killed and Hundreds Injured as Quake Hits Indonesia," 15 Jan. 2021 The strongest wind gust recorded at Shemya Island in Alaska, located about 1,450 miles southwest of Anchorage, was 83 mph, with high winds and pounding waves battering the western Aleutian Island chain.
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Author: Jason Samenow, Andrew Freedman, Anchorage Daily News, "‘Bomb cyclone’ builds in Aleutian Islands, becoming strongest storm on record to hit Alaska," 31 Dec. 2020 Clark later retired to Gainesville, Fla, located about 70 miles southwest of Jacksonville.
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David Aaro, Fox News, "Joe Clark, no-nonsense NJ school principal who inspired movie ‘Lean on Me,’ dead at 82," 30 Dec. 2020 Meanwhile, the National Hurricane Center is monitoring a broad non-tropical area of low pressure that might be developing several hundred miles southwest of the Azores.
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Joe Cavaretta, sun-sentinel.com, "Flood threat remains for South Florida as Tropical Storm Eta begins its move west," 9 Nov. 2020 The Skeeters play at the 7,500 seat Constellation Field, located about 20 miles southwest of Minute Maid Park off Highway 6.
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Matt Young, Chron, "Astros to make Sugar Land Skeeters their Class AAA affiliate," 16 Nov. 2020 The storm is located about 960 miles southwest of the Azores with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph.
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Janice Dean, Fox News, "2020 Atlantic hurricane season becomes most active on record after Theta forms," 10 Nov. 2020 Theta was located 995 miles southwest of the Azores and moved quickly east at 15 mph.
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Katelyn Umholtz, NOLA.com, "2020 is officially the busiest hurricane season in recorded history; Subtropical Storm Theta named," 10 Nov. 2020 It was located several hundred miles southwest of the Azores on Monday and was looking more organized.
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Leigh Morgan, al, "Tropical Storm Eta track update: Eta moves into the Gulf; expected to become a hurricane," 9 Nov. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun The office in the Albuquerque area is one of I.H.S.’s 12 service regions and serves 20 Pueblos, two Apache bands, three Navajo chapters and two Ute tribes across four southwest states.
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New York Times, "Native Americans Reliant on Hospital Feel Abandoned by U.S. During Pandemic," 3 Jan. 2021 The latest expedition saw him and a small group of volunteers sailing along the country’s southwest coast into Fiordland National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
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Naomi Arnold, Washington Post, "An island nation's audacious effort to save its unique wildlife," 31 Dec. 2020 Kenyada Mitchell, a 29-year-old southwest Alabama man, was fatally shot May 22 in Fairfield.
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Carol Robinson | Crobinson@al.com, al, "‘They deserve justice’: Birmingham families seek answers as Jefferson County ends 2020 with 74 unsolved murders," 31 Dec. 2020 The hospitals with the highest number of patients on ventilators were in the metro region with 90, followed by the southwest with 32, northwest with 23, Arkansas Valley with 20, northeast with 18, north-central with 18 and southeast with four.
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Jeannie Roberts, Arkansas Online, "Virus cases rise by 3,184; prisons go on 'lockdown'," 31 Dec. 2020 The Ravises were among the lucky ones in the southwest Florida village.
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Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY, "Long lines, crashing websites, conflicting information confound COVID-19 vaccine roll out to Florida seniors," 30 Dec. 2020 The southwest suburb initially rejected recreational marijuana sales in September 2019 before a majority of voters supported it in a March referendum.
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Robert Channick, chicagotribune.com, "Illinois weed sales on pace to top $1 billion in year one of recreational sales, with plenty of room to grow," 29 Dec. 2020 The Creek fire started on Wednesday near De Luz Road in Fallbrook around 11 p.m. and was pushed southwest by Santa Ana winds onto the Marine Corps base.
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San Diego Union-Tribune, "Brush fire in Fallbrook that charred more than 4,200 acres 90 percent contained," 26 Dec. 2020 Meanwhile, Trevor, 21—who had killed a buck the day before—would wait with the truck at the next trailhead, 2 miles up Burnt Ridge Road in the Siskiyou Mountains of southwest Oregon.
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Jr Sullivan, Field & Stream, "F&S Classics: The Vanishing," 23 Dec. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective An Atlanta police officer fired his gun while chasing suspects in southwest Atlanta on Monday, Channel 2 Action News reported.
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Sarah Kallis, ajc, "Police: Atlanta officer fires gun while chasing stolen car suspects," 4 Jan. 2021 West and southwest winds could gust near 20 mph, which will help temperatures rise to mild conditions for January.
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Washington Post, "D.C.-area forecast: New Year, new rain. 2021 starts damp and chilly.," 1 Jan. 2021 In Lee County in southwest Florida, seniors have waited outside for hours in long lines, and Lake County announced Wednesday that vaccine distribution to those 65 and older would be first-come, first-served beginning Friday.
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Steven Lemongello, orlandosentinel.com, "Fried asks to DeSantis to use National Guard to fix ‘chaotic’ COVID-19 vaccinations," 31 Dec. 2020 Daniel Leroy Jackson, 24, was killed was killed Sunday, March 8, in southwest Birmingham.
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Carol Robinson | Crobinson@al.com, al, "‘They deserve justice’: Birmingham families seek answers as Jefferson County ends 2020 with 74 unsolved murders," 31 Dec. 2020 The 56 beds were lost from hospitals in the southwest region of the state, according to the Health Department.
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Jeannie Roberts, Arkansas Online, "Virus cases rise by 3,184; prisons go on 'lockdown'," 31 Dec. 2020 In 2013, Abrams formed the New Georgia Project, initially as an apparatus to sign up people for the Affordable Care Act, particularly people of color living in southwest Georgia.
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New York Times, "Knocking on Two Million Doors in Georgia," 29 Dec. 2020 Stagnant air is especially likely for the central and southern portions of the Willamette Valley and in southwest Washington.
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oregonlive, "Portland metro Monday weather: Sunny, cool, with windy conditions on east side; high 45," 28 Dec. 2020 Bishop Reginald Jackson stepped to the microphone at a drive-in rally outside a church in southwest Atlanta as his voice carried over a loudspeaker and the radio to people gathered in, around and on top of cars that filled the parking lot.
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Elana Schor And Ben Nadler, Star Tribune, "Faith takes the forefront as Georgia Senate runoffs heat up," 29 Nov. 2020
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'southwest.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for southwest
southwest
adverbEnglish Language Learners Definition of southwest
(Entry 1 of 3)
: to or toward the southwest
southwest
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of southwest (Entry 2 of 3)
: the direction between south and west
: the southwestern part of a country or region especially : the southwestern part of the U.S.
southwest
adjectiveEnglish Language Learners Definition of southwest (Entry 3 of 3)
: located in the southwest
: blowing from the southwest
See the full definition for southwest in the English Language Learners Dictionary
southwest
adverbsouth·west | \ sau̇th-ˈwest \
\Kids Definition of southwest
(Entry 1 of 3)
: to or toward the direction between south and west
The town is southwest of here.
southwest
adjectiveKids Definition of southwest (Entry 2 of 3)
: placed toward, facing, or coming from the southwest
southwest winds
southwest
nounKids Definition of southwest (Entry 3 of 3)
1 : the direction between south and west
2 capitalized : regions or countries southwest of a point that is mentioned or understood
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Time Traveler for southwest
The first known use of southwest was before the 12th century
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