westward

American  

[west-werd] / ˈwɛst wərd /

adjective

1. moving, bearing, facing, or situated toward the west.

   a westward migration of farm workers.

---

adverb

1. Also westwards. toward the west; west.

   a train moving westward.

noun

1. the westward part, direction, or point.

   The wind had veered to the westward.

westward British  

/ ˈwɛstwəd /

adjective

1. moving, facing, or situated in the west

---

adverb

1. Also: westwards.  towards the west

noun

1. the westward part, direction, etc; the west

Other Word Forms

• westwardly
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of westward

before 900; Middle English; Old English westweard. See west, -ward

Example Sentences

I teach my students about Didion’s ancestor, Nancy Hardin Cornwall, who trekked westward with the Donner-Reed party in 1846.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 8, 2026

Americans took copies with them from the original 13 states as the frontier moved westward; these, Mr. Auslin writes, became “an indispensable furnishing and handbook.”

From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026

The travellers moved on, continuing westward along the coast.

From BBC • May 2, 2026

A fourth vessel, the Madagascar-flagged tanker Murlikishan, meanwhile crossed the strait westward into the Gulf on Tuesday morning through the Larak Island route.

From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026

The garden was full of huts and sheds, some so near the old westward windows that they cut off all their light.

From "The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien