southpaw
Americannoun
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a person who is left-handed.
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Sports.
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a player who throws with the left hand, especially a pitcher.
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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
noun
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a boxer who leads with his right hand and off his right foot as opposed to the orthodox style of leading with the left
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any left-handed person
adjective
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
Etymology
Origin of southpaw
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.
Vocabulary lists containing southpaw
Idioms and Expressions, List 1
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Idioms and Expressions, List 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
And the 5ft 9in southpaw said she is ready to draw on the experience of being the pantomime villain.
From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026
The diminutive southpaw came out of retirement last year.
From Barron's • Feb. 23, 2026
The home crowd sang "Leigh Wood is one of our own", as their man settled into a southpaw rhythm, slowing the pace and picking shots from range.
From BBC • Feb. 21, 2026
Things seemed to be winding down for the southpaw from Dallas after he was limited to seven games last year because of offseason shoulder surgery and a bone spur in his left big toe.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 28, 2025
The one who’d taught me how to pitch, and me a southpaw.
From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
