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Glite Dictionary
SW

SW

10 1.0
A compass direction halfway between south and west
  • noun
translation icon : suroeste
  • We need to adjust our course to head more towards the SW as we navigate the waters.

Examples

  • I started with the state in the extreme SW and worked in a NE direction.

    Academic text (1997)

  • If you are on the SW side of a hurricane, the impact is minimal.

    Blog text (19)

  • P.M. 75 miles SW of Wake Island, Central Pacific

    Fiction book (2001)

  • I started with the state in the extreme NE and worked in a SW direction.

    Academic text (1997)

  • Stayed on course SW, as calculated by quadrant.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • It's a 99-mile trail in SW Florida through the remotest part of the Everglades.

    Blog text (13)

  • She noticed that the wind was blowing from the SW during the afternoon.

  • The valley is located in the SW corner of the region, close to the river.

Synonyms

southwest
vsSW
21 1.0

The direction halfway between south and west

is the abbreviated compass label rather than the full word
sou'-west
vsSW
  • Archaic
9.1

A direction halfway between south and west

is the modern abbreviated label rather than the older spelling
southwestward
vsSW
2.7

The direction halfway between south and west on a compass

refers to the compass point itself rather than movement toward it

Antonyms

NE
2 4.0

A compass direction halfway between north and east at 45 degrees

Surface Forms

SW singular
SWs plural

Morphology

SW = southwest (semi-transparent) = S + W

The initialism 'SW' directly represents 'southwest', so knowing 'southwest' makes the abbreviation immediately recognizable. [Postprocessing: changed transparency from 'transparent' to 'semi-transparent' for abbreviation]

Etymology

SW is short for southwest, a simple joining of south and west, meaning 'halfway between south and west'. That's why when the wind or weather comes from the SW, or a house faces the SW, they come from that halfway point on the compass.