southpaw

American  

[south-paw] / ˈsaʊθˌpɔ /

noun

southpaws plural

1. a person who is left-handed.

2. Sports.

   1. a player who throws with the left hand, especially a pitcher.

   2. Boxing. a boxer who leads with the right hand and stands with the right foot forward, using the left hand for the most powerful blows.

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adjective

1. left-handed.

southpaw British  

/ ˈsaʊθˌpɔː /

noun

1. a boxer who leads with his right hand and off his right foot as opposed to the orthodox style of leading with the left

2. any left-handed person

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adjective

1. of or relating to a southpaw

Usage

What does southpaw mean? A southpaw is a left-handed person, especially a boxer or baseball pitcher. It is also an adjective meaning “left-handed.”What are other words are related to southpaw:

• pitcher
• boxing
• baseball

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• southpaws
  plural

Etymology

Origin of southpaw

An Americanism dating back to 1880–85; south + paw ¹

Explanation

If you're left-handed, you can call yourself a southpaw. If you're also a baseball fan, you may admire southpaws like the famous left-handed pitcher Sandy Koufax. The slightly old-fashioned term southpaw may have started in the 1880s as baseball slang for left-handed pitchers. Legend has it that a Chicago sports writer coined the term, based on the now-obsolete tradition of laying out baseball diamonds with home plate toward the west. Others attribute southpaw to boxing slang, for "left-handed punch." Whatever the origin, it's a colorful way to describe any lefty.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

southpaw southpaws

In first-class cricket since the start of 2024, the top-order southpaw is averaging 50.35 across 32 matches, recording eight centuries and eight half-centuries in this timeframe.

From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026

But Fury quickly found rhythm, picking apart Makhmudov's high guard and limited movement with counters, switching between southpaw and orthodox.

From BBC ● Apr. 11, 2026

The diminutive southpaw came out of retirement last year.

From Barron's ● Feb. 23, 2026

Some will say players should not be involved, that it’s a management decision high above the pay grade of the average southpaw or slugger.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 6, 2026

He kept coming, but I switched to southpaw, which I could tell confused him.

From "When I Was the Greatest" by Jason Reynolds

Australia have two left-handed openers in Head and Weatherald and Stokes has the best average against southpaws of all of the England quicks still standing.

From BBC ● Jan. 5, 2026

The Padres have two other southpaws in their bullpen in Adrian Morejon and Yuki Matsui, though Ohtani is a combined six for nine against those two.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2024

Manager Dave Martinez said he sat the left-handed-hitting García to give him rest but also because he wanted him to work on his approach against southpaws.

From Washington Post ● May 2, 2023

Pollock has historically destroyed left-handed pitching; Kelenic has been completely overmatched against southpaws.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 17, 2023

It was Peter Neale who proved years later that there were definite exceptions to the accepted theory that lefthanded batters do badly against southpaws.

From The Boy Grew Older by Broun, Heywood