Question

up, down, and forward are examples of relative directions. north, south, east, and west are ______ directions, which are indicated by a compass rose on a map.

Explanation:

In geography (a subfield of Natural Science), directions like north, south, east, west are called absolute (or cardinal) directions as they are fixed and indicated by a compass rose. The context of map and compass rose relates to geographic concepts of directions.

Answer:

absolute (or cardinal)