northwest
HighNeutral (Formal and Informal)
Definition
Meaning
the direction or compass point that is midway between north and west.
a region in the northwestern part of a country, area, or place; also used to describe something coming from, located in, or moving towards this direction or region.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Acts as a noun (a region/direction), an adjective (northwestern), and an adverb (towards the northwest). The hyphenated form 'north-west' is also standard in British English.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
British English often uses a hyphen ('north-west'), especially for the noun/adjective. American English uses a closed compound ('northwest') almost exclusively. The abbreviation 'NW' is common in both for postal addresses and charts.
Connotations
No significant difference in connotation. Both associate it with direction, geography, and weather (e.g., a northwest wind).
Frequency
Equally frequent in both varieties, but the closed spelling is more frequent globally due to American media influence.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
(Noun) The wind is from the northwest.(Adverb) We sailed northwest for two days.(Adjective) We visited the northwest coast.(Noun, of) The northwest of the country is very mountainous.Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “northwest by north (compass point)”
- “the wild northwest (suggests a frontier region)”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Expanding our operations into the northwest will require a new logistics hub.
Academic
The study focuses on glacial retreat patterns in the northwest quadrant of the ice sheet.
Everyday
Just head northwest on this road for about five miles and you'll see it.
Technical
The aircraft adjusted its bearing to 315 degrees, a true northwest heading.
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The storm is expected to north-west across the country overnight. (Rare, poetic/technical use)
American English
- The system will northwest into the Great Lakes region. (Rare, technical/meteorological use)
adverb
British English
- Continue driving north-west for another three miles.
- The birds migrate north-west in autumn.
American English
- The frontier expanded steadily northwest.
- Turn the antenna slightly northwest.
adjective
British English
- We took a holiday in the north-west Highlands.
- There will be a north-westerly gale.
American English
- She lives in the northwest suburbs of the city.
- A northwest breeze will bring cooler air.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The sun sets in the west, but in the northwest in summer.
- My house is in the northwest of the town.
- The weather forecast says a strong northwest wind will arrive tomorrow.
- They plan to travel northwest to visit the national park.
- The historical northwest passage was sought by explorers for centuries as a trade route.
- Archaeological evidence suggests the settlers migrated from the southeast to the northwest.
- The company's strategic pivot northwest, into the Scandinavian markets, proved highly profitable.
- Geopolitical tensions in the northwest quadrant of the region have impacted global shipping lanes.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of a compass: NORTH is at the top, WEST is on the left. NORTHWEST is the point in the top-left quadrant.
Conceptual Metaphor
DIRECTION IS A DESTINATION (e.g., 'He moved to the northwest.'); DIRECTION IS A PATH (e.g., 'The road leads northwest.'); DIRECTION IS AN ORIENTATION (e.g., 'a northwest-facing garden').
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid direct calques like 'северо-западный ветер' for 'northwestern wind'. The standard English phrase is 'northwest wind'.
- In English addresses, 'NW' is a postal code, not a grammatical case as in Russian 'на северо-западе'.
Common Mistakes
- Confusing 'northwest' (direction/region) with 'northwestern' (characteristic of the northwest). Example: Incorrect: 'It's a northwest university.' Correct: 'It's a northwestern university.'
- Inconsistent hyphenation in British contexts (e.g., writing 'northwest England' where style may require 'north-west England').
Practice
Quiz
In which context is 'northwest' most commonly used as an adjective?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
In modern English, especially American English, it is one word ('northwest'). British English often uses a hyphen ('north-west'), particularly for the noun and adjective forms. The two-word form 'north west' is now considered archaic or incorrect for standard usage.
'Northwest' primarily denotes direction or a specific region (noun), or describes movement/orientation (adverb). 'Northwestern' is almost exclusively an adjective meaning 'located in or characteristic of the northwest.' Example: 'northwest wind' (wind from the northwest) vs. 'northwestern university' (a university located in the northwest).
The standard abbreviation is 'NW', written in capital letters without periods. It is commonly used in postal addresses (e.g., London NW1), on maps, and in weather charts.
A wind is always named for the direction it COMES FROM. Therefore, a 'northwest wind' blows FROM the northwest TOWARDS the southeast.