the direction to the left of a person facing the sunset; direction of the South Pole from any other point on the earth's surface
the point on a compass at 180°, directly opposite north
a region or district in or toward this direction
the southern part of the earth, esp. the antarctic regions
adjective
in, of, to, toward, or facing the south
from the south: a south wind
designating the southern part of a continent, country, etc.: South Asia
adverb
in or toward the south; in a southerly direction
See south in American Heritage Dictionary 4
(south)
noun
Abbr. S
a. The direction along a meridian 90° clockwise from east; the direction to the right of sunrise.
b. The cardinal point on the mariner's compass 180° clockwise from due north and directly opposite north.
An area or region lying in the south.
often South
a. The southern part of the earth.
b. The southern part of a region or country.
South The southern part of the United States, especially the states that fought for the Confederacy in the Civil War.
adjective
To, toward, of, facing, or in the south.
Originating in or coming from the south: a hot south wind.
adverb
In, from, or toward the south.
Slang Into a worse or inferior position, as of decreased value: a stock that went south shortly after he bought it.
Word History: Though a south-facing house on the north side of a street sometimes gets more sun, etymologically speaking, the sunny side of the street is the south side. “South” in Old English was sūth. This came from an earlier *sunth, from a still earlier *sunthaz, “sunny,” whose first element, *sun-, means “sun.” As the first word in compounds, Old English sūth was subject to shortening, showing up in Modern English pronounced (sŭ). This is seen in place names like Suffolk (where the “south folk” were; compare Norfolk), Sutton, “south town,” and Sussex, the location of the “South Saxons” (whose eastern and western cousins were located in Essex and Wessex, respectively).