Synonyms of headwind

headwind

noun

as in wind

an air movement that is blowing toward something (such as a ship or an airplane) as it moves forward

Stiff headwinds caused the flight to take longer than expected.

Related Words

• wind
• air
• gale
• blow
• breath
• breeze
• westerly
• southeaster
• northeaster
• norther
• puff
• flurry
• current
• blast
• zephyr
• whiff
• northwester
• southwester
• waft
• sea breeze
• windstorm
• draft
• tornado
• squall
• tempest
• airflow

Dissimilar Words

• tailwind
• calm

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of headwind

Kelchen expects an uptick in closures rather than a massive wave, with schools in rural parts of the Northeast and Midwest facing particularly strong headwinds. — Tatiana Sataua, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2026

That march, an inflection point in the Civil Rights Movement, also came at a fraught moment for the country, when economic headwinds, civil unrest, political division and the war in Vietnam bitterly divided Americans. — ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026

That march, an inflection point in the Civil Rights Movement, came at a fraught moment for the country, when economic headwinds, civil unrest, political division and the Vietnam War bitterly divided Americans. — Matt Brown, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026

The expansion comes as pro-Trump media faces headwinds and the broader industry runs into changing viewer habits. — Josh Feldman, NBC news, 27 Aug. 2026