southwestward

American  

[south-west-werd, sou-west-werd] / ˌsaʊθˈwɛst wərd, ˌsaʊˈwɛst wərd /

adverb

1. Also southwestwards. toward the southwest.

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adjective

1. facing or tending toward the southwest.

2. coming from the southwest, as a wind.

noun

1. the southwest.

southwestward British  

/ ˌsaʊθˈwɛstwəd, ˌsaʊˈwɛstwəd /

adjective

1. from or towards the southwest

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adverb

1. a variant of southwestwards

noun

1. a direction towards or area in the southwest

Other Word Forms

• southwestwardly adjective

Etymology

Origin of southwestward

First recorded in 1540–50; southwest + -ward

Example Sentences

The weather threat extends southwestward across parts of Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee and Arkansas.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 4, 2023

That risk for a few dry thunderstorms wraps southwestward into northern California, where sporadic lightning strikes could ignite blazes.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 19, 2021

Four lengthy dry periods that occurred between 6.25 million and 8.75 million years ago likely drove those creatures to migrate southwestward into Africa, Böhme and her colleagues reported last month in Communications Earth & Environment.

From Science Magazine • Jun. 4, 2021

But between the ridges, four Allied armies were probing southward like the fingers of a hand; another, like an opposed thumb, was flexing southwestward from China's Yunnan Province.

From Time Magazine Archive

When the Trojans had taken leave of their kind hosts and had successfully rounded the eastern tip of Italy, they kept on sailing southwestward around Sicily with all confidence in their prophetic guide.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton