westerly

adjective or adverb west·er·ly \ ˈwe-stər-lē \

Updated on: 26 Apr 2018

Definition of westerly

1 : situated toward or belonging to the west

the westerly end of the farm

2 : coming from the west

a westerly breeze

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Recent Examples of westerly from the Web

As the low pushes away Friday, westerly winds will kick up lake effect, and make light, lingering snow possible.

— staff, cleveland.com, "Comment here on cleveland.com court and crime stories for Wednesday, March 7, 2018," 7 Mar. 2018
Temperatures only drop a little, into the upper 20s to near 30, while winds gradually change to a westerly direction and blow at 5 to 10 mph.

— rick grow, Washington Post, "D.C.-area forecast: Wintry mix possible during afternoon-evening rush, may cause slick travel," 8 Jan. 2018
The westerly shift of Irma, which weakened to a Category 2 storm on Sunday, might have spared Florida bigger property losses.

— nicole friedman, WSJ, "Building Boom Puts Millions in Irma’s Path," 11 Sep. 2017
Irma will have a period of approximately 24 hours—the timing depends upon where the storm goes, as a more westerly track keeps it over the extreme southeastern Gulf of Mexico for longer—in which to re-organize and intensify.

— eric berger, Ars Technica, "Key questions about Hurricane Irma on Saturday," 9 Sep. 2017
The storm’s going to take a westerly turn, and then a northerly turn: Imagine a slight hook to the left, and then a sharp hook up to the north.

— jen kirby, Daily Intelligencer, "What Can We Expect From Hurricane Irma? A Q&A With a Weatherman," 5 Sep. 2017
Its track shifted in a westerly track from its position at about 490 miles (790 km) east of the Leeward Islands.

— david j. neal, miamiherald, "Hurricane Irma now a Category 4, governor declares a state of emergency," 4 Sep. 2017
The winds were weak, in turn, because the westerly jet stream was well north of the storm.

— jeff halverson, Washington Post, "Harvey’s two-step across Texas: The peculiar meteorology behind a U.S. rain record," 31 Aug. 2017
Moreover, normal westerly winds had meandered north, leaving stagnant air over Houston, with no winds to disrupt the storm structure.

— deborah sullivan brennan, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Warming ocean fueled Hurricane Harvey," 31 Aug. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'westerly.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of westerly

obsolete wester western

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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westerly

noun

Definition of westerly

plural westerlies

: a wind from the west

First Known Use of westerly

1845

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

Westerly

geographical name Wes·ter·ly \ ˈwes-tər-lē \

Definition of Westerly

town in southwestern Rhode Island on the border with Connecticut population 17,936

WESTERLY Defined for English Language Learners

westerly

adjective

Definition of westerly for English Language Learners

: located or moving toward the west
: blowing from the west

WESTERLY Defined for Kids

westerly

adjective or adverb west·er·ly \ ˈwe-stər-lē \

Definition of westerly for Students

1 : toward the west

the lake's westerly shore

2 : from the west

a westerly wind

Learn More about westerly

Spanish Central: Translation of westerly Nglish: Translation of westerly for Spanish speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about westerly

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westerly

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Origin and Etymology of westerly

westerly

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Westerly

Definition of Westerly

WESTERLY Defined for English Language Learners

westerly

Definition of westerly for English Language Learners

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westerly

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