southern

1 of 2

adjective

south·​ern ˈsə-t͟hərn 

1

Southern : of, relating to, or characteristic of a region conventionally designated South

2

a

: lying toward the south

b

: coming from the south

a southern wind

southernness

ˈsə-t͟hərn-nəs 

noun

often Southernness

Southern

2 of 2

noun

: the dialect of English spoken in most of the Chesapeake Bay area, the coastal plain and the greater part of the upland plateau in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, and the Gulf states at least as far west as the valley of the Brazos in Texas and sometimes taken to include the south Midland area

Examples of southern in a Sentence

Adjective

the southern part of the state

the southern shore of the lake

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

On Thursday, the regional director for the United Nations World Food Program, Lola Castro, told reporters in New York that Melissa’s devastation has affected six million people in the Caribbean region, particularly residents of southern Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Cuba in addition to Jamaica. —Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 11 Dec. 2025

The scientists analyzed data from an earlier University of Washington study that collected blood samples from polar bears across northern and southern Greenland. —Briana Alvarado, ABC News, 11 Dec. 2025

My island home, Puerto Rico, and my southern home, Atlanta, are both places that are known for it. —Von Diaz, Bon Appetit Magazine, 11 Dec. 2025

The skull was taken from a site dating to the Basketmaker culture, which Boomgarden told Cowboy State Daily does not reference a particular tribe, but a time period of a pre-Ancestral Puebloan culture that lived across southern Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. —Virginia Chamlee, PEOPLE, 11 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English southern, southren, from Old English sūtherne; akin to Old High German sundrōni southern, Old English sūth south

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1935, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing southern

• southern corn rootworm
• southern fur seal
• southern hemisphere
• southern lights
• southern maidenhair fern
• southern minke whale

Kids Definition

southern

adjective

south·​ern ˈsət͟h-ərn 

1

capitalized : of, relating to, or characteristic of the South

2

: lying toward or coming from the south

southernmost

-ˌmōst 

adjective