Synonyms

go south

Idioms

Deteriorate or decline, as in The stock market is headed south again. This expression is generally thought to allude to compasses and two-dimensional maps where north is up and south is down. However, among some Native Americans, the term was a euphemism for dying, and possibly this sense led to the present usage. [Slang; first half of 1900s] Also see go west.

Example Sentences

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go south

As consistent as the players have to be, everything can go south in a single frame.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 12, 2026

Pride believes it is unlikely that the increasingly debt-fueled tech boom would go south in a hurry.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 30, 2025

Paramount also offers to pay Warner $5 billion should the deal go south.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 23, 2025

So how many of these borderline investments would have to go south before the fund’s net asset value gets whacked?

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 7, 2025

His sisters Arya and Sansa would marry the heirs of other great houses and go south as mistress of castles of their own.

From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

go south

Example Sentences

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