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northeasterly

northeasterly

1 3.7
A wind or direction that comes from the northeast
  • adjective
  • /ˌnɔrˈθiːˈɛstərli/
translation icon : noreste
  • The now-unimpeded force of the winter Atlantic and its northeasterly storms pounded through the opening.
  • northeasterly winds

Examples

  • The storm brought a strong northeasterly wind that knocked down several trees.

  • Over the winter, northeasterly winds blew the sand into smooth, rounded dunes, in some places six and eight feet high.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • A little more snow is possible in Scotland and northeast England, especially on Wednesday and Thursday in the northeasterly wind.

    Blog text (14)
  • There's a brisk northeasterly wind blowing in this room.

  • So here you've got some northeasterly winds now as this storm moves up in this direction and this pattern just translates.

  • For six days, it slowly floated in a northeasterly direction, driven by winds from a high-pressure system hovering above the Gulf of Mexico.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • Decreased temperatures in the fall and winter, along with northerly and northeasterly winds, result in a southern ice expansion until melting predominates in April or May of the following spring.

    Academic text (1997)
  • After the plume reached the top of Block E, it was spread downstream to apartments in nearby buildings (blocks B, C, and D) by a predominant northeasterly wind.

    Academic text (2006)
  • Increased pelagic productivity in leeward areas may be a function of localized upwelling and larval entrainment, driven by persistent (northeasterly) trade winds (McGary, 1955).

    Academic text (1993)
  • After checking the map, we decided to head in a northeasterly direction to reach the coast.

Synonyms

northeast
vsnortheasterly
1 1.0

Coming from or facing toward the north and east

is mainly used for winds or to describe direction as an adjective
north-east
vsnortheasterly
1.0

Toward the north and east

is the same meaning but normally written without a hyphen
nor'-east
vsnortheasterly
  • Archaic
9.9

In the direction halfway between north and east

is the neutral modern adjective used in general contexts
northeastwardly
vsnortheasterly
6.2

Toward the northeast

is an adjective term often referring to wind or fixed direction
nor'-nor'-east
vsnortheasterly
  • Archaic
9.9

In the direction between north and northeast

refers to the general quadrant rather than this narrower intermediate bearing

Surface Forms

northeasterly positive

Morphology

northeasterly = northeast (transparent) = north + east + erly

Built from the transparent compound 'northeast' with the standard directional suffix '-erly'; the sense 'coming from or toward the northeast' follows directly.

Etymology

Northeasterly joins north and east with -ly, and it often describes wind or movement that comes 'from the northeast' or goes 'toward the northeast'. Picture wind blowing from the top-right of a map to make the meaning clear.