south by west
Americannoun
noun
adjective
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.
Soon the fraying American regiments were being hounded south by west through New Jersey, and by Christmas Day King George’s troops had driven them across the Delaware River into Pennsylvania.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025
"Keep her south by west," added the pilot.
From Brave Old Salt or, Life on the Quarter Deck by Optic, Oliver
"Still, we shall have the choice of either hauling our wind and making south by west, or of running on, and she can't tell which we shall choose."
From Held Fast For England A Tale of the Siege of Gibraltar (1779-83) by Henty, G. A. (George Alfred)
The course was south by west, almost perpendicular to that of the Spaniards.
From The Life of Nelson, Volume 1 The Embodiment of the Sea Power of Great Britain by Mahan, A. T. (Alfred Thayer)
The course is south by west, three-quarters west, when the lighthouse bears west by south.
From A Victorious Union by Optic, Oliver
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
