southpaw

American  

[sauth-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

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Etymology

Origin of southpaw

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

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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

And Ohtani slid into the Dodgers lineup, hitting second in the batting order for the first time this season, with Mookie Betts leading off against the Padres southpaw.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026

Itauma came out with real intent, landing straight lefts from his southpaw stance.

From BBC ● Aug. 29, 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

She was a southpaw for whupping, and she had arthritis in that elbow, so while she could still whup, it didn’t make much of an impression.

From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck

He averages 23.9 against southpaws compared with 31.3 against right-handers - helpful for England because Tongue and Atkinson's records are almost a mirror image.

From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026

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

Curiously, being stacked with powerful righties didn’t help Toronto against left-handed starters — the Blue Jays were 12-20 in games started by southpaws.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 9, 2022

When it comes to watches, southpaws often get the short end of the stick.

From The Verge ● Jul. 27, 2022

It is interesting to note that these lefthanders are again described as ambidextrous, but it is safe to assume that they too were in reality southpaws.

From Seeing Things at Night by Heywood Broun

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