north by west

American

noun

Navigation, Surveying.

a point on the compass 11°15′ west of north. NbW

north by west British

noun

one point on the compass west of north, 348° 45′ clockwise from north

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

in, from, or towards this direction

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Dunkeld�, a small town of Scotland, on the Tay, about 14 miles north by west of Perth; pop.

From Project Gutenberg

The next morning the wind was still north by west, having hauled only a single point in twelve hours; showing that we had been running, neck and neck, with the gale.

From Project Gutenberg

In these storms the wind invariably circulates from north by west through south to east.

From Project Gutenberg

Having only a small peel," rejoined Heiton, "it is necessary I should look after it when a thousand Scotts are marching north by west.

From Project Gutenberg

Embraces Smith and Minor Islands, situated in the Straits of Juan de Fuca, about fourteen miles north by west from Port Townsend, Washington.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023