northerly
/ˈnɔɹðɚli/noun, adjective, adverb
northerly is spelled N-O-R-T-H-E-R-L-Y: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,789th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, northerly means “A northerly wind (that is, a northern wind, which blows from the north or northerly)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of northerly is northerlies.
How many letters and syllables are in northerly?
| Letters | 9: N-O-R-T-H-E-R-L-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 30,789th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is northerly?
Northerly appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,789th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce northerly?
- US /ˈnɔɹðɚli/
- UK /ˈnɔːðəli/
Northerly has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-northerly.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of northerly
- northerlies plural
- more northerly comparative
- most northerly superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does northerly mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A northerly wind (that is, a northern wind, which blows from the north or northerly).
adjective
- 1
Facing the north; directed towards the north.
a northerly voyage
- 2
Located in a northern region.
- 3
Coming from the north.
a northerly wind
adverb
- 1
In an northward direction or position; (towards the) north.
- 2
From the north.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Northerly in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense wind blowing from the north:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | aquilon |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does northerly come from?
From norther + -ly.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).