SOUTHERN

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does southern mean? 

• SOUTHERN (adjective)
  The adjective SOUTHERN has 4 senses:

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

2. situated in or oriented toward the south

3. situated in or coming from regions of the south

4. from the south; used especially of wind

  Familiarity information: SOUTHERN used as an adjective is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SOUTHERN (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

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

Context example:

southern plantations

Similar:

Confederate (of or having to do with the southern Confederacy during the American Civil War)

gray; grey (used to signify the Confederate forces in the American Civil War (who wore grey uniforms))

Attribute:

Confederacy; Confederate States; Confederate States of America; Dixie; Dixieland; South (the southern states that seceded from the United States in 1861)

South (the region of the United States lying to the south of the Mason-Dixon line)

Antonym:

northern (in or characteristic of a region of the United States north of (approximately) the Mason-Dixon line)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Situated in or oriented toward the south

Synonyms:

southerly; southern

Context example:

took a southerly course

Similar:

south (situated in or facing or moving toward or coming from the south)

Derivation:

southernness (the property of being to the south)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Situated in or coming from regions of the south

Context example:

southern constellations

Similar:

austral (of the south or coming from the south)

meridional (located in the south or characteristic of southern people or places)

south-central (being in or of a region of the United States including the states of the lower Mississippi valley and east of the Rio Grande)

Attribute:

south (a location in the southern part of a country, region, or city)

Antonym:

northern (situated in or coming from regions of the north)

Derivation:

southernness (the property of being to the south)

Sense 4

Meaning:

From the south; used especially of wind

Synonyms:

southerly; southern

Context example:

the winds are southerly

Similar:

south (situated in or facing or moving toward or coming from the south)

Derivation:

southernness (the property of being to the south)

 Context examples 

The researchers say the toll could be especially high in southern Europe.

(Study: Climate Change Will Bring 50-Fold Rise in Europe Weather-related Deaths, VOA News)

Ten years ago, the European Space Agency's Mars Express found an ultraviolet glow coming from "magnetic umbrellas" in the southern hemisphere.

(Auroras on Mars, NASA)

When Cassini arrived at the Saturnian system in 2004, the southern hemisphere was enjoying summertime, while the northern was in the midst of winter.

(Saturn's Famous Hexagon May Tower Above the Clouds, NASA)

The newly-detected protostars are located primarily in the southern areas.

(SOFIA Reveals How the Swan Nebula Hatched, NASA)

A state in southern Mexico bordering on the Pacific Ocean.

(Guerrero, NCI Thesaurus)

A type of plant that is native to southern Africa and has white, pink, purple, or red flowers and 3- to 5-lobed leaves.

(Geranium, NCI Dictionary)

In Uruguay, smoke arrived 6 January, as was the case in southern Brazil.

(Australian bushfire smoke drifts to South America, SciDev.Net)

It occurs predominantly in elderly male patients of southern European ancestry.

(Classic Kaposi Sarcoma, NCI Thesaurus)

Weimerskirch speculated that it could have been affected by a particularly strong El Nino weather event that warmed the southern Indian Ocean in 1997.

(Study: World's Largest King Penguin Colony Declines Sharply, VOA)

Appearing during the planet's southern summer, the feature is the fourth and latest mysterious dark vortex captured by Hubble since 1993.

(Hubble Reveals Dynamic Atmospheres of Uranus, Neptune, NASA)