due north
9
2.9
- noun
- /duː nɔrθ/
:
norte verdadero
- Finally, Arbor Lodge, located four and a quarter miles due north of downtown, has fewer retail and restaurant outlets compared to the other neighborhoods.
- miles due north
- degrees due north
- head due north
Examples
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Arawan lies some 180 miles almost due north of Timbuktu, a six-day slog on foot and camel.
Academic text (2007) -
To find the campsite, head due north for about two miles from the lake.
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If you were to go due north of here, what would you run into?
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Okay, N is for north, so turn it due north.
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It's this direction, due north.
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Just due north of here.
Fiction book (1997) -
'We are located 11 miles due north of Middletown.'
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It appears to be due north of our present position.
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You've got me headed almost due north here.
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We're drifting due north, and straight into Iranian territorial waters.
Synonyms
209
1.0
The direction on a compass at the top of most maps
30
1.0
The direction on a compass that points toward the North Pole
1
1.0
The direction toward the north on a compass
Antonyms
How Exact
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'due' (exactly/directly) modifies 'north' (the cardinal direction), so 'due north' straightforwardly means 'exactly to the north.' This adverb + direction pattern is regular in English and found cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows both words will readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
The phrase due north comes from people who used maps and compasses, where due meant 'straight' or 'exact' and north named the direction to the North Pole. So due north means 'exactly north' on a compass.