SINCE 1828
southwest
adverb
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
Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb
The department urged residents in Bailey, a community in Park County about 35 miles southwest of downtown Denver, to keep their pets indoors as officials searched for the mountain lion. — Phil Helsel, NBC News, "Young boy attacked by mountain lion in Colorado subdivision, officials say," 22 Aug. 2019 The father and daughter launched about 5 p.m. from the Granbury City Beach Boat in Lake Granbury, about 40 miles southwest of Fort Worth. — Madeline Holcombe, CNN, "A 3-year-old was found alone and adrift in a boat in Texas. A man's body was recovered nearby," 17 Aug. 2019 The Sydney Morning Herald reported that McKinnon grew up in the town of Warrnambool, about 155 miles southwest of Melbourne, and that friends remembered him as a talented musician who liked to surf big waves. — Fox News, "Australian tourist fatally shot in camper van in New Zealand while sleeping inside with partner," 16 Aug. 2019 Early Saturday morning, 13 people (and two cats) were plucked out by Coast Guard helicopter after water engulfed their homes on Isle de Jean Charles, a slender strip of land about 50 miles southwest of New Orleans. — Jenny Jarvie, latimes.com, "Barry, now a tropical depression, soaks much of Louisiana while sparing New Orleans," 14 July 2019 Police in Robstown, 220 miles southwest of Houston, pursued the SUV late Tuesday but then stopped the chase because of rain and wet roads, according to Nueces County sheriff's Capt. — CBS News, "6 El Savador migrants killed, others critically injured in SUV accident in Texas," 5 June 2019 Devine is a town of approximately 4,500 people that sits about 20 miles southwest of San Antonio. — Matthew Martinez, star-telegram, "Teen stabbed ‘friend’ 22 times then tried to blend in with high school crowd, Texas cops say | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 17 Mar. 2018 South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said what appeared to be two short-range ballistic missiles were fired from near Kwail on North Korea's west coast, about 80 miles southwest of Pyongyang, in South Hwanghae province early on Tuesday. — NBC News, "North Korea says U.S. is inciting military tension," 6 Aug. 2019 Zapata County, which borders Mexico about 200 miles southwest of San Antonio, is best known for Falcon Lake, a mecca for bass fisherman. — John Maccormack, ExpressNews.com, "Deadly fever ticks are infesting border cattle herds," 2 Aug. 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
Troopers were notified of the crash on the Bering Sea island, southwest of the Yukon Delta region, at 8 p.m. on Saturday via an SOS beacon from an inReach satellite communication device. — Michelle Theriault Boots, Anchorage Daily News, "No injuries in Nunivak Island plane crash," 9 Sep. 2019 The Browns unveiled the statue of legendary quarterback Otto Graham outside First Energy Stadium’s southwest gate. — cleveland.com, "Cleveland Browns unveil Otto Graham statue at First Energy Stadium," 7 Sep. 2019 Kuykendahl Stormwater Detention Basin Excavation of the Kuykendahl basin was underway in 2018, southwest of the Kuykendahl Road and Ella Boulevard intersection. — Melanie Feuk, Houston Chronicle, "Kuykendahl basin to blend nature with flood reduction efforts," 6 Sep. 2019 Winds will be light and variable, becoming south-southwest at about 5 to 10 mph in the afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. — Los Angeles Times, "Tailgating and kickoff forecast: UCLA vs. San Diego State," 6 Sep. 2019 That moisture mainly comes in the form of widespread daily showers and thunderstorms for the desert southwest, but so far this summer, that simply hasn’t happened. — Chris Bianchi, The Denver Post, "No monsoon, big problem: Parts of Colorado back in drought again," 3 Sep. 2019 The Yakima-Herald Republic reports the ruling Wednesday by U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Rice allows the tribe to have jurisdiction over Native American residents in the nearly 190-square-mile rural area southwest of Goldendale. — USA TODAY, "Space dummy, Bigfoot denial, pumped-up pumpkin: News from around our 50 states," 2 Sep. 2019 Summers spent chasing after lambs and goats among the high-desert scrub southwest of Gallup, N.M. The school on the Navajo Reservation. — Betty Reid, azcentral, "To Chester Nez, last of the original Code Talkers, the words are more than a code," 29 Aug. 2019 On July 4th, along a dusty backroad in the southwest Brazilian state of Rondônia, near the logging hub of Espigão d’Oeste, unknown assailants stopped a tanker truck, yanked the driver from the cab, and set it ablaze. — Felipe Fittipaldi, National Geographic, "Inside the faltering fight against illegal Amazon logging," 28 Aug. 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective
Skies will be clear with southwest winds around 5 mph, becoming calm. — Los Angeles Times, "USC vs. Fresno State weather forecast: Balmy with a light breeze," 30 Aug. 2019 Heavy rain was falling across southwest Alabama on Saturday morning, and there have been reports of flooding in Mobile County. — Leigh Morgan, al.com, "Hurricane Barry bringing torrential rain to parts of Alabama; what else is coming?," 13 July 2019 Pretty much everyone should see temperatures reach the low 90s in the early afternoon, with metro locations likely to hit the mid 90s under a light southwest wind. — Greg Porter, Washington Post, "PM Update: Mild and muggy tonight, oppressive heat and humidity Monday," 17 June 2018 The storm system will move off to the northeast with southwest winds briefly boosting readings back to the 90-degree mark Thursday. — Tom Skilling, chicagotribune.com, "Thunderstorms on Wednesday, then heat returns Thursday," 29 May 2018 Residents in southwest Houston's District K again will have a voice on City Council this Wednesday as Martha Castex-Tatum is sworn in and takes her seat at the council horseshoe. — Mike Morris, Houston Chronicle, "District K Council member-elect Tatum to be sworn in Wednesday," 14 May 2018 The latest happened Sunday night in southwest Austin's quiet Travis Country neighborhood, wounding two men in their 20s who were walking in the dark. — Bloomberg.com, "Fear Mounts in Austin as Serial Bomber Uses Tripwire," 19 Mar. 2018 Honi Boudreaux grew up in the Maplewood neighborhood of southwest Houston and graduated from Bellaire High School. — Tracy Maness, Houston Chronicle, "West University Place grandmother takes up treading the boards," 26 Aug. 2019 By May 2018, the Wigginses had reopened their school as the Joshua Home in a remote area of southwest Missouri, where there was no law requiring state oversight. — Anna Claire Vollers | Avollers@al.com, al, "Couple who ran religious boarding school in Alabama arrested for human trafficking," 26 Aug. 2019These 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
adverb
English 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
adverb
south·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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Comments on southwest
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