the point or direction midway between south and west. SW
a region in this direction.
the Southwest, the southwest region of the United States.
lying toward, situated in, or directed toward the southwest.
coming from the southwest, as a wind.
the point of the compass or the direction midway between west and south, 225° clockwise from north
any area lying in or towards this direction
(sometimes capital) of or denoting the southwestern part of a specified country, area, etc
southwest Italy
situated in or towards the southwest
(esp of the wind) from the southwest
before 900; Middle English; Old English sūthwest. See south, west
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Meliani’s venture is part of an improbable boom unfolding half a world away from the Périgord Noir, the region in southwest France famed for the product.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
Santa Barbara is also expected to see gusty sundowner winds across its southwest coast in the evenings this week, with gusts of up to 45 to 50 mph, Fielding said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 7, 2026
The new consecrations are set to take place near the society's seminary in Econe, a village in the Rhone valley in Alpine southwest Switzerland, at the foot of the mountains.
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
These crops depend heavily on the southwest monsoon, which normally provides about 70% of India's annual rainfall.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
By the statue hangs a faded banner: Bolivia Mar. When Bolivia declared its independence it had a territorial pseudopod that extended southwest from its Andean heartland through the Atacama Desert to the sea.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Southwest Nigeria -- home to economic capital Lagos -- has long been considered one of the safest regions in a country struggling with multiple security crises.
From Barron's ● Jul. 11, 2026
The 737-700s that Southwest flies are 20 years old on average.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
Andrew Leising, a research oceanographer at NOAA’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center, said at this point, “atmospheric changes due to El Niño are likely helping maintain these warmer-than-normal temperatures” off the Southern California coast.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
Lucy's principal investigator is based at the Boulder, Colorado, office of the Southwest Research Institute, which is headquartered in San Antonio.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 25, 2026
Instead, it was triggered there by the arrival of Southwest Asian domesticates.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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.
