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

From the first shots at Lexington and Concord in 1775 to the last cannon blasts at Cuddalore in southern India in 1783, the Revolution broke boundaries and crossed borders. —Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025

What Happens Next The storm is likely to lose strength after crossing the Vietnamese coast and moving northwest, toward northeast Cambodia, eastern Thailand and southern Laos later on Friday. —Robert Birsel, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Nov. 2025

Haftar, who controls eastern and southern Libya, runs a government unrecognized by the United States or European powers. —Mick Krever, CNN Money, 6 Nov. 2025

Most cities have enough water to keep themselves going for years, saved through their own efforts or through the Arizona Water Banking Authority, established in 1996 to store unused Colorado River water in central and southern Arizona. —Austin Corona, AZCentral.com, 6 Nov. 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