Etymology From Middle English northest, from Old English norþēast, equivalent to north + east.
1
The intercardinal compass point halfway between north and east; specifically at a bearing of 45°.
The task of discussing priority concerns for this region is complicated by the fact that there are essentially two rural northeasts.1990, United States. Congress. House. Committee on Agriculture. Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, and Rural Development, Rural Economic Development: Hearings, page 1604:
Etymology From Middle English northest, from Old English norþēast, equivalent to north + east.
1
Usually Of, in or pertaining to the northeast; northeastern.
"PG&E is aware of a power outage initially impacting about 61,000 customers in the area northeast of Sacramento including Auburn, Grass Valley and Loomis.2026 June 20, Erin Heft, “Massive PG&E power outage leaves approximately 61,000 customers in the dark across Placer County”, in KCRA, archived from the original on 20 Jun 2026:
2
Usually Situated toward or in the direction of the northeast; northeastward; northeasterly.
a northeast course
Chungshe is one of eleven villages in Liuchia township, Tainan county (see Maps 2 and 3). It lies about 30 kilometers northeast of Tainan city.1972, Burton Pasternak, Kinship & Community in Two Chinese Villages, Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 10:
3
Usually Coming from the northeast; northeasterly.
a northeast wind
northeast
adv
Etymology From Middle English northest, from Old English norþēast, equivalent to north + east.
1
Usually Towards the direction of the northeast; northeastwards.