1
a
: 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.
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
Jordan Blum, Fortune, 3 Oct. 2025
Category 2 Hurricane Imelda is in the Atlantic Ocean, 20 miles southwest of Bermuda.
—Miami Herald Hurricane Bot, Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2025
Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 2 Oct. 2025
The main entrance to the venue will be to the southwest of the memorial, where Kessler Road and Memorial Drive meet.
—Joseph Hernandez, Kansas City Star, 2 Oct. 2025
Keith Matheny, Freep.com, 3 Oct. 2025
Now the Jeserich Building, also known as the Tower building — a distinctive piece of 1888 Kansas City architecture, with its southwest Queen Ann turret rooms and bow windows — will be coming down, its owners confirmed Tuesday.
—Chris Higgins, Kansas City Star, 30 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for southwest
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Adverb
The ship-tracking website Marine Traffic showed the ship heading southwest from the French Atlantic coast where it was detained and apparently bound for the Suez Canal.
—Jordan Blum, Fortune, 3 Oct. 2025
Category 2 Hurricane Imelda is in the Atlantic Ocean, 20 miles southwest of Bermuda.
—Miami Herald Hurricane Bot, Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2025
Noun
The second was given a 20% chance of development over the next week across a broad swath of the Atlantic from southwest of the Cape Verde Islands to just east of the Windward Islands on the east end of the Caribbean.
—Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 2 Oct. 2025
The main entrance to the venue will be to the southwest of the memorial, where Kessler Road and Memorial Drive meet.
—Joseph Hernandez, Kansas City Star, 2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
The city analyzed truck traffic generators in southwest Detroit, identified travel patterns and paid particular attention to the Livernois Junction Intermodal terminal, which accounts for more than 1,200 truck trips per day.
—Keith Matheny, Freep.com, 3 Oct. 2025
Now the Jeserich Building, also known as the Tower building — a distinctive piece of 1888 Kansas City architecture, with its southwest Queen Ann turret rooms and bow windows — will be coming down, its owners confirmed Tuesday.
—Chris Higgins, Kansas City Star, 30 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for southwest
Cite this Entry
“Southwest.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/southwest. Accessed 10 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
southwest
1 of 3 adverb
south·west
sau̇th-ˈwest 
nautical sau̇-ˈwest
: to or toward the southwest
southwest
2 of 3 noun1
: the direction between south and west
2
capitalized
: regions or countries southwest of a point that is mentioned or understood
southwest
3 of 3 adjective1
: coming from the southwest
a southwest wind
2
: situated toward or at the southwest
the southwest corner
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share