South is a main direction on a map or compass. It is the opposite of north. People use south to show location or travel.
The sun sets in the south.
We traveled south after lunch.
South can describe something from or related to the south. This use is less common in formal English; usually ‘southern’ is used, but ‘south’ works in spoken or informal use.
We saw many south birds here.
This is a south wind today.
As a verb, south means to go or move toward the south direction. It is used especially in sailing or bird migration.
The ship will south at dawn.
Birds south for the winter.
In some countries like the US, south can mean the southern region, often with special culture or history. It is called ‘the South’ with a capital ‘S’.
She is from the South in America.
The South has warm weather.
In informal use, ‘go south’ means to become worse or fail. People use it when talking about problems or bad changes.
Sales went south last year.
Things are going south fast.
In astronomy, south means the direction towards the South Pole in the sky. It helps people find stars or navigate at night.
The star moves toward south at night.
Find the south star to navigate.
South can be used to say where plants or parts of houses face. The south side often gets more sun and warmth.
Plant flowers on the south side of the house.
The south wall gets the most sun.
