northwest

[nawrth-west; Nautical nawr-west]

noun

a point on the compass midway between north and west. Abbreviation: NW
a region in this direction.
the Northwest,
1. the northwestern part of the United States, especially Washington, Oregon, and Idaho.
2. the northwestern part of the United States when its western boundary was the Mississippi River.
3. the northwestern part of Canada.

adjective

Also north·west·ern. coming from the northwest: a northwest wind.
directed toward the northwest: sailing a northwest course.

adverb

from the northwest.
toward the northwest: sailing northwest.

Origin of northwest

before 900; Middle English, Old English; see north, west

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for northwest

Contemporary Examples of northwest

When, in succession, he made Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959), Psycho (1960), and The Birds (1963).
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days
David Freeman
December 13, 2014
Al Ghabban compared one of these sites, Tayma, in the northwest, to New York City, and another one, Thaj, to Dubai.
When Saudi Arabia Ruled the World
Emily Wilson
October 31, 2014
The Spanish press reports that she is originally from Galicia in northwest Spain.
Ebola Contracted in Madrid Hospital Could Spread in Europe
Barbie Latza Nadeau
October 7, 2014
“I want their honest response,” he told me over the phone from his home in northwest California.
Inside a Hospital for the Criminally Insane
Caitlin Dickson
September 15, 2014
It controls a border crossing in the south and has two regime air bases surrounded in the northwest.
How to Beat ISIS and Assad
Michael Tomasky
September 5, 2014

Historical Examples of northwest

That there's the northwest corner—ap-prox'm'tley—close as I could come by sightin'.
Good Indian
B. M. Bower
He paused and pointed to the northwest portion of the height.
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola
Fred had his flat, and I engaged him to take a part of our luggage to Northwest River.
The Long Labrador Trail
Dillon Wallace
In spite of the opposition it made progress to the northwest of Saarburg.
The Story of the Great War, Volume II (of VIII)
Various
This was the Austrian forces on Kik, to the northwest of Zavlaka.
The Story of the Great War, Volume II (of VIII)
Various

British Dictionary definitions for northwest

northwest

noun

the point of the compass or direction midway between north and west, 315° clockwise from north
the northwest (often capital) any area lying in or towards this direction

adjective Also: northwestern

(sometimes capital) of or denoting the northwestern part of a specified country, area, etcnorthwest Greenland

adjective, adverb

in, to, towards, or (esp of the wind) from the northwest

Symbol: NW

Derived Formsnorthwesternmost, adjective

Northwest

noun the Northwest

the northwestern part of England, esp Lancashire and the Lake District
the northwestern part of the US, consisting of the states of Washington, Oregon, and sometimes Idaho
(in Canada) the region north and west of the Great Lakes

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

Word Origin and History for northwest

Old English norðwest (adv.); from north + west. As a noun from late 14c. Related: Northwestern; northwesterly; northwestward. Northwest Passage first attested c.1600.