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The phrase "Well, that went south really quickly" tends to mean a situation got really bad. Implying that south is bad.
by lprubin 9y ago
The phrase "Well, that went south really quickly" tends to mean a situation got really bad. Implying that south is bad.
- Luc 9y agoPerhaps related: the Latin words for left and right are sinister and dexter, which obviously have connotations...
- Freak_NL 9y agoSeems etymologically plausible at the least. Left-handedness used to be frowned upon up to the point of children being forced to write with their right hands in school (often under physical threat of a ruler or reed slapped across your left hand if you did dare to use it). Glad that was over when I grew up in the eighties. Even today some people react with surprise when they see me writing with my left hand. We're a sizeable minority (of ten percent) — it's far from rare — but amongst older generations it sometimes just comes across as weird (I'm in my thirties myself).
- dkrich 9y agoIs that true? I always assumed it's because on a map and in general, south is associated with down. So "going south" is basically like "going downhill", etc.
- B1FF_PSUVM 9y agoWhat about going pear-shaped?
- pbhjpbhj 9y agoIt's 'cause Pete Tong has a big arse. /s