southern

South·ern
S1O1U1T1H4E1R1N1
UK/ˈsʌðən/Canada, US/ˈsʌðɚn//ˈsaʊðɚn/Philippines/ˈsaʊ.təɹn/

adjective

Of, facing, situated in, or related to the south.

“The southern climate.”

Very commonScrabble 11

Meanings

southern1

adjectivesouthern (comparative more southern, superlative most southern or southernmost)

comparative more southern · superlative most southern · superlative southernmost

  1. Of, facing, situated in, or related to the south.
  2. Of or pertaining to a southern region, especially Southern Europe or the southern United States.

    The southern climate.

    2 more examples

    From the ground, Colombo’s port does not look like much.[…] But viewed from high up in one of the growing number of skyscrapers in Sri Lanka’s capital, it is clear that something extraordinary is happening: China is creating a shipping hub just 200 miles from India’s southern tip.

    2013 June 8, “The new masters and commanders”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8839, archived from the original on 25 Nov 2020, page 52

    A group of Thai researchers found the spider during an expedition to Phang-Nga province in southern Thailand to research the diversity and distribution of tarantulas in the country.

    2023 September 26, Hafsa Khalil, “Electric blue tarantula species discovered in Thailand”, in CNN
  3. Of a wind: blowing from the south; southerly.
nounsouthern (plural southerns)

plural southerns

  1. Synonym of southerner.

    Then in 1835 it (negatively) remarked 'a national tone and feeling [. . .] with which we southerns do not wholly sympathize'.

    2012, Ian Duncan, Edinburgh Companion to James Hogg, →ISBN, page 73
    3 more examples

    Force prevails most with the northerns, reason with the inhabitants of a temperate or middle climate, superstition with the southerns; thus astrology, magic, and all mysterious sciences have come from the Chaldeans and Egyptians.

    1839, Henry Hallam, Introduction to the Literature of Europe in the Fifteenth, Sixteenth, and Seventeenth Centuries

    The peace which the French leaguers made soon after with Louis XL, for money and offices, did not satisfy the southerns, whose views in this patriotic war had been wholly different.

    2011, Augustin Thierry, History of the Conquest of England by the Normans, →ISBN

    This last formed a strong contrast, by its simplicity and its austere bearing, with the old army of Italy, enriched in the beautiful plains which it had conquered, and composed of brave, fiery, and intemperate Southerns.

    2011, Adolphe Thiers, Frederick Shoberl, The History of the French Revolution, →ISBN, page 34

    Synonyms: southerner

Southern2

adjectiveSouthern (comparative more Southern, superlative most Southern)

comparative more Southern · superlative most Southern · alternative Sotheran · alternative Sothern · alternative Sotheron · alternative Southan · alternative Southerin · alternative Southon · alternative Southorn · alternative Sudran · alternative Sudron · alternative Sutherin · alternative Suthern · alternative Sutherns · alternative Suthren

  1. From or pertaining to the southern part of any region.
  2. USFrom or pertaining to the South, the south-eastern states of the United States, southern portions of some other states (e.g., Southern California), or to the inhabitants or culture of that region.

    But although Southern cooking makes use of a cornucopia of vegetables, it also typically includes generous portions of meat and fried chicken. Even vegetable dishes and breads are often cooked with animal fat: Greens are fried in bacon grease […]

    1993, Lillian Kayte, Southern Surprise, published in the June 1993 issue of the Vegetarian Times, page 36
    1 more example

    Southern cooking makes its presence felt throughout the northern half of the state. Vegetables such as okra, collard greens, black-eyed peas, fried green tomatoes, and fried eggplant are added to staples such as fried chicken, roast beef, and hogjaw — meat from the mouth of a pig.

    2004, Mark Ellwood, Todd Obolsky, Ross Velton, The Rough Guide to Florida, page 34
proper noun

alternative Sotheran · alternative Sothern · alternative Sotheron · alternative Southan · alternative Southerin · alternative Southon · alternative Southorn · alternative Sudran · alternative Sudron · alternative Sutherin · alternative Suthern · alternative Sutherns · alternative Suthren

  1. abbreviationellipsisEllipsis of Southern Comfort.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounSynonym of southerner.

Similar

More synonyms by meaning

adjectivein or characteristic of a region of the United States south of (approximately) the Mason-Dixon line

Opposite

adjectivesituated in or oriented toward the south

adjectivesituated in or coming from regions of the south

Similar
australmeridionalsouth-central
Opposite

adjectivefrom the south; used especially of wind

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

southern · adjective, noun

  1. Proto-Indo-European*sh₂un-
  2. Proto-Germanic*sunþrōnijaz“southern”
  3. Old Englishsūþerne“southern, southerly, coming from the south; of southern make”
  4. Middle Englishsoutherne
  5. Englishsouthern

From Middle English southerne, sothern, sutherne, from Old English sūþerne (“southern, southerly, coming from the south; of southern make”), from Proto-Germanic *sunþrōnijaz (“southern”), from Proto-Indo-European *sh₂un-, *sh₂wen-, r/n-stem alternation of *sóh₂wl̥ (“sun”). Cognate with Scots southron, sudron (“southern”), Old Frisian sūthern, sūdern (“southern”), Middle Low German sūdern (“southern”), Middle High German sundern (“southern”), Icelandic suðrænn (“southern, tropical”). By surface analysis, south + -ern.

Full word history & related roots →

Southern · adjective, proper noun

English surname, from the adjective southern. Often used as a northern English nickname for someone from the south of the country, or as a Scottish nickname for an Englishman.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Ancient Greek νοτερός
  • νοτερός (noterós)of the south
Arabic جَنُوبِيّ
  • جَنُوبِيّ (janūbiyy)of the south
Basque hegoaldeko
  • hegoaldekoof the south
Bengali দক্ষিণ
  • দক্ষিণ (dokkhin)of the south
Bulgarian южня́шки, ю́жен
  • южня́шки (južnjáški)of or pertaining to a southern region
  • ю́жен (júžen)of the south
Catalan austral, meridional
  • australof the south
  • meridionalof the south
Chinese Mandarin 南的, 南方的
  • 南的 (nán de)of the south
  • 南方的 (nánfāng de)of the south
Czech jižní
  • jižníof the south
Danish sydlig
  • sydligof the south
Dutch zuiders, zuid
  • zuidersof or pertaining to a southern region
  • zuidof the south
  • zuidelijkof the south
Esperanto suda
  • sudaof the south
Estonian lõunamaine, lõuna-
  • lõunamaineof the south
  • lõuna-of the south
Finnish eteläinen, etelämaalainen
  • eteläinenof or pertaining to a southern region
  • etelämaalainenof or pertaining to a southern region
  • eteläinenof the south
  • etelä-of the south
French sudiste, austral
  • sudisteof or pertaining to a southern region
  • australof the south
  • méridionalof the south
  • sudof the south
German südlich, südländisch
  • südlichof or pertaining to a southern region
  • südländischof or pertaining to a southern region
  • südlichof the south
  • Süd-of the south
Greek νότιος
  • νότιος (nótios)of the south
Hebrew דְּרוֹמִי
  • דְּרוֹמִי (dromí)of the south
Hindi दक्षिणी, दक्षिणी
  • दक्षिणी (dakṣiṇī)of or pertaining to a southern region
  • दक्षिणी (dakṣiṇī)of the south
Hungarian dél, déli
  • délof or pertaining to a southern region
  • déliof or pertaining to a southern region
  • déliof the south
Irish deisceartach, deisceartach
  • deisceartachof or pertaining to a southern region
  • deisceartachof the south
Italian meridionale
  • meridionaleof the south
Japanese 南の, 南方の
  • 南の (minami no)of the south
  • 南方の (nanpō no)of the south
Korean 남의, 남쪽의
  • 남의 (nam-ui)of the south
  • 남쪽의 (namjjog-ui)of the south
Latin merīdiōnālis, austrālis
  • merīdiōnālisof or pertaining to a southern region
  • austrālisof or pertaining to a southern region
  • merīdiōnālisof the south
  • austrālisof the south
Latvian dienvidu
  • dienviduof the south
Lithuanian pietinis, pietų
  • pietinisof the south
  • pietųof the south
Norwegian Bokmål søndre, søndre
  • søndreof or pertaining to a southern region
  • søndreof the south
  • sørligof the south
  • sydligof the south
Persian جنوبی
  • جنوبی (jonubi)of the south
Polish południowy, południowy
  • południowyof or pertaining to a southern region
  • południowyof the south
Portuguese meridional, do sul/Sul
  • meridionalof or pertaining to a southern region
  • do sul/Sulof or pertaining to a southern region
  • sulistaof or pertaining to a southern region
  • do sulof the south
  • meridionalof the south
  • australof the south
Romanian sudic, sudic
  • sudicof or pertaining to a southern region
  • sudicof the south
  • australof the south
  • meridionalof the south
Russian южный, ю́жный
  • южный (južnyj)of or pertaining to a southern region
  • ю́жный (júžnyj)of the south
Scottish Gaelic deas, a deas
  • deasof or pertaining to a southern region
  • a deasof or pertaining to a southern region
  • deasof the south
  • a deasof the south
Slovak južný
  • južnýof the south
Spanish del sur, sureño
  • del surof or pertaining to a southern region
  • sureñoof or pertaining to a southern region
  • meridionalof or pertaining to a southern region
  • australof or pertaining to a southern region
  • del surof the south
  • sureñoof the south
  • meridionalof the south
  • australof the south
Swedish södra, sydlig
  • södraof the south
  • sydligof the south
Tagalog katimugan
  • katimuganof the south
Thai ใต้
  • ใต้ (dtâai)of the south
Turkish güney, güneyli
  • güneyof the south
  • güneyliof the south
Ukrainian півде́нний
  • півде́нний (pivdénnyj)of the south
Urdu جُنُوبی
  • جُنُوبی (junubī)of the south
Vietnamese nam
  • namof the south
Welsh deheuol
  • deheuolof the south
Yiddish דרומדיק, דרומדיק
  • דרומדיק (doremdik)of or pertaining to a southern region
  • דרומדיק (doremdik)of the south

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

southern. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/southern

MLA

“southern.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/southern. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “southern,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/southern.

Source: southern on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.