south

[south, south, south]

noun

1. a cardinal point of the compass lying directly opposite north. S

2. the direction in which this point lies.

3. (usually initial capital letter),  a region or territory situated in this direction.

4. the South, the general area south of Pennsylvania and the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi, consisting mainly of those states that formed the Confederacy.

adjective

1. lying toward or situated in the south; directed or proceeding toward the south.

2. coming from the south, as a wind.

adverb

1. to, toward, or in the south.

2. Informal.,  into a state of serious decline, loss, or the like.

   Sales went south during the recession.

verb (used without object)

1. to turn or move in a southerly direction.

2. Astronomy.,  to cross the meridian.

South

¹

/ saʊθ /

noun

1. the southern part of England, generally regarded as lying to the south of an imaginary line between the Wash and the Severn

2. 1. the area approximately south of Pennsylvania and the Ohio River, esp those states south of the Mason-Dixon line that formed the Confederacy during the Civil War

   2. the Confederacy itself

3. the countries of the world that are not economically and technically advanced

adjective

1. 1. of or denoting the southern part of a specified country, area, etc

   2. ( capital as part of a name )

      the South Pacific

south

²

/ saʊθ /

noun

1. one of the four cardinal points of the compass, at 180° from north and 90° clockwise from east and anticlockwise from west

2. the direction along a meridian towards the South Pole

3. (often capital) any area lying in or towards the south

4. (usually capital) cards the player or position at the table corresponding to south on the compass

adjective

1. situated in, moving towards, or facing the south

2. (esp of the wind) from the south

adverb

1. in, to, or towards the south

2. archaic,  (of the wind) from the south

Word History and Origins

Origin of South¹

before 900; Middle English suth ( e ), south ( e ) (adv., adj., and noun), Old English sūth (adv. and adj.); cognate with Old High German sund-

Word History and Origins

Origin of South¹

Old English sūth; related to Old Norse suthr southward, Old High German sundan from the south

Idioms and Phrases

see go south.

Example Sentences

In the south, some Israeli troops were also reported to have pulled back from the Khan Younis area.

Read more on BBC

Other videos show circulating show similar destruction in the Sabra and Zeitoun neighbourhoods to the south and east, where entire apartment blocks have been levelled.

Read more on BBC

Perched in his art-filled château in the south of France, the British expatriate spent years hurling invectives at, falling out with or blatantly undermining an astonishing number of people.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

When he finally turned south, however, he met what may have been the fiercest tempest on Lake Superior in more than 60 years.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The downturn is impacting different parts of the commonwealth, including Bardstown, Ky., a city of about 13,500 people south of Louisville.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• freezing 
• frigid 
• glacial 
• icy