north-west

north-west — adverb

1. in or towards the direction that is between north and west, opposite to south-ea

1.adverbA2
Definition

in or towards the direction that is between north and west, opposite to south-east

Example

Élise drove north-west along the winding coastal road toward the old fishing port.

verb of motion + north-west along [route]

The refugee camp lies about thirty miles north-west of the capital city.

lies + north-west of [location] for position

Synonyms
  • northwestward

    slightly more formal and often used in written navigation or geography; means the same direction

  • northwesterly

    used especially for winds or general trends rather than precise travel directions

Antonyms

Usage Note

In British English the hyphen is standard (north-west); American English often writes it as one word (northwest). The adverb form describes where something is located or which way something moves.

Common Mistakes

We travelled to north-west
We travelled north-west
north-west as an adverb does not need a preposition like 'to' before it.
The north-west wind' (when meaning wind direction)
The north-westerly wind' or 'The wind blew from the north-west
as an adverb, north-west describes movement direction, not the source of the wind.

Word family

  • north-westerly
    adjectiveB2
  • north-westerly
    adverbB2
  • north-westwards
    adverbB2
  • northwest
    adverbA2
  • northwestern
    adjectiveB1

Synonym discussion

Sense: adverb/1

All three describe a direction between north and west, but they differ in usage. North-west is the everyday adverb for giving travel directions or describing location ('the village lies north-west of the city'). Northwestward is more formal and often appears in written navigation, geography, or meteorological reports ('the storm moved northwestward'). Northwesterly is most often used for winds or general directional trends ('a northwesterly flow of cold air') and less commonly for precise travel directions. In casual speech, north-west is the natural choice; the other two sound specialised.

north-west ↗northwestwardnorthwesterly

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • roughly north-west
  • directly north-west
  • slightly north-west

Phrases

  • head north-west
  • travel north-west
  • drive north-west
  • lie north-west of
  • be located north-west of
  • point north-west

Prepositions

Etymology

Proto-GermanicOld EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

North-west joins two Old English words: norþ (north, from Proto-Germanic *nurþr-) and west (west, from Proto-Germanic *westr-). Speakers have used the compound since Anglo-Saxon times to name the intermediate point on the compass between north and west. The hyphenated spelling north-west is standard in British English; the one-word form northwest is more common in American English.