This week’s theme
Words originating in the hand

This week’s words
mainpast
openhanded
light-fingered
thumbsucker
southpaw


This week’s comments
AWADmail 1044

Next week’s theme
Blend words

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(SOUTH-paw)

MEANING:

noun: A left-handed person.
adjective: Left-handed.

ETYMOLOGY:

Of unknown origin. Earliest documented use: 1813.

NOTES:

The term is especially common in baseball to describe a left-handed pitcher and in boxing to describe a boxer who uses the left hand for the most powerful punches, but what’s the origin of the term? According to popular belief, the term originated in baseball: the diamond was placed so the batter faces east and avoids the afternoon sun. A left-handed pitcher facing the batter would thus have the left hand to the south. The only problem with this is that the earliest citation of the term doesn’t involve baseball or any other sports.

USAGE:

“Are you right-handed or southpaw?”
Kat Savage; For Now; CreateSpace; 2018.

See more usage examples of southpaw in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: