: the direction of the north terrestrial pole : the direction to the left of one facing east
b
: the compass point directly opposite to south
2
capitalized
a
: regions or countries lying to the north of a specified or implied point of orientation
b
: the industrially and economically developed nations of the world compare southsense 5
3
often capitalized
a
: the one of four positions at 90-degree intervals that lies to the north or at the top of a diagram
b
: a person occupying this position in the course of a specified activity (such as the game of bridge)
Example Sentences
Adverb Turn north onto Elm Street. It's a few miles north of here. The bird is found as far north as Canada. Noun The wind is coming from the north. The birds migrate from the North. Parts of the North were hit hard by the storm. I grew up in the North. The American Civil War was between the North and the South. See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Adverb
Similar Native victories elsewhere on the Atlantic coast held off English advancement for a while, and the low numbers of colonists everywhere else in North America (north of central Mexico) left Native populations in control for much longer. Kathleen Duval, WSJ, 16 Sep. 2022 Between 24 and 28 daily trains will not operate while service is suspended, including the popular car-carrying Auto Train service between Lorton, Virginia, and Sanford, Florida, north of Orlando. David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 14 Sep. 2022 Wood Street through Ashland Avenue, north of Thornton Road, was built in the 1930s but never reconstructed, with the original pavement still serving as the roadway’s base in some locations. Paul Eisenberg, Chicago Tribune, 8 Sep. 2022 Models project the heaviest rain in our northern suburbs (north of the Beltway), and some areas of flooding can’t be ruled out, especially late at night and toward morning. Jason Samenow, Washington Post, 5 Sep. 2022 Thousands also were ordered to flee on Wednesday from a fire in Castaic, north of Los Angeles, and a blaze in eastern San Diego County, near the Mexican border, where two people were severely burned and several homes were destroyed.CBS News, 3 Sep. 2022 Thousands also were ordered to flee on Wednesday from a fire in Castaic, north of Los Angeles, and a blaze in eastern San Diego County, near the Mexican border, where two people were severely burned and several homes were destroyed. Adam Beam, BostonGlobe.com, 3 Sep. 2022 The Route Fire, burning near Castaic, north of Los Angeles, spanned more than 4,600 acres, and Interstate 5 was closed in both directions Wednesday night. Phil Helsel, NBC News, 1 Sep. 2022 The Route Fire, which began burning Wednesday afternoon near Castaic, north of Santa Clarita, spread to just over 5,200 acres as of Thursday morning, with 12% of the fire’s perimeter contained. Lauren Hepler, San Francisco Chronicle, 31 Aug. 2022
Adjective
That construction is underway and aimed for completion late next year, on a plot of land in north Phoenix that can accommodate several additional factories. Jeanne Whalen And Ellen Nakashima, Anchorage Daily News, 3 Aug. 2022 Take a hot air balloon ride: Deer Valley in north Phoenix is home to several hot air balloon companies that will take you soaring for epic views of the Valley and Sonoran Desert. Felicia Campbell And Jill Cassidy, The Arizona Republic, 2 Sep. 2022 While rain will be an on-and-off factor in the forecast this week, there is no organized risk for severe weather in north Alabama, according to the Storm Prediction Center. Leigh Morgan, al, 23 Aug. 2022 The pilot expanded this summer with the addition of 22,000 homes in the north-central end of the city, to reach a total of 40,000 homes. James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 18 Aug. 2022 The other properties are scattered along the town-village borders in the north-central section of the town, according to town documents. Cathy Kozlowicz, Journal Sentinel, 17 Aug. 2022 That construction is underway and aimed for completion late next year, on a plot of land in north Phoenix that can accommodate several additional factories. Jeanne Whalen And Ellen Nakashima, Anchorage Daily News, 3 Aug. 2022 That construction is underway and aimed for completion late next year, on a plot of land in north Phoenix that can accommodate several additional factories. Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post, 2 Aug. 2022 Matafeo says with a laugh at a café in her north London neighborhood. Emily Zemler, Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2022
Noun
Residents in Taipei, the island’s capital in the north, shared video clips of ceiling lights and other objects swaying and shaking. Elaine Yu, WSJ, 18 Sep. 2022 The strike on the Damascus International Airport came 10 days after Israel launched a missile attack Syria’s Aleppo airport in the north that put it out of commission for a few days.BostonGlobe.com, 17 Sep. 2022 Like Ukraine, Kazakhstan has a sizable Russian-speaking component, some 18 percent of the population, concentrated in the north of the country. Robyn Dixon, Washington Post, 15 Sep. 2022 The Jewish state has often been on the receiving end of barrages from groups like Hezbollah in Lebanon, which has led to wars against Israel's neighbor in the north. Ronn Blitzer, Fox News, 12 Sep. 2022 Her follow-up to them, The Eternal Daughter, is a quiet and contemplative ghost story set in an old manor hotel in the north of England. Douglas Greenwood, Vogue, 12 Sep. 2022 In October 1958, Duke Ellington played a concert in Leeds, an unfashionable industrial city in the north of England. Bob Stanley, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2022 The success of the Ukrainian offensive in the north comes at critical juncture.Arkansas Online, 11 Sep. 2022 Other Democratic cities in the north are waiting their turn to be targeted by Abbott. Joel Mathis, The Week, 10 Sep. 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Adverb
Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German nord north and perhaps to Greek nerteros lower, infernal
First Known Use
Adverb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above
Adjective
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1