We’ve all been in situations where everything was going fine — and then suddenly, things took a turn for the worse. That’s when we say: “Things went south.”
This idiom is extremely handy to talk about events that take a negative turn and get worse from bad. It’s a casual, widely-used English expression, and today we’ll break it down with real-life examples, smart usage, and a simple practice exercise.
What Does the phrase “When Things Go South” Mean?
The phrase “go south” or “when things go south” means that a situation starts to fail, break down, or take a bad turn unexpectedly.
It’s often used to describe:
- Projects that don’t go as planned
- Relationships that begin to fall apart
- Situations that go from good to bad, often suddenly
- Or anything from a project, career, relationship, personal journey, financial or emotional situation, etc that starts to decline or deteriorate.
It is a casual conversational idiom that is often used in workplace conversations, personal chats, business meetings, news, etc.
“Go South” Examples In Sentences
1. At work:
“Everything was going well in the meeting until the budget came up. That’s when things went south.”
2. In relationships:
“We were getting along great, but after that argument about trust, things went south fast.”
3. In business or news:
“The stock was performing well for months — and then it suddenly went south after the CEO resigned.”
4. In daily life:
“We planned a beach picnic, but the moment it started raining, everything went south.”
Why “South”? What’s the Story Behind the idiom ‘Go South”?
In old navigation maps, “north” usually meant progress or upward direction, while “south” symbolized decline or going down. That metaphor became common in American slang and eventually entered mainstream English.
So when someone says something “went south,” they mean it took a downward turn — metaphorically.
When should you use “Go South”?
Use this phrase when:
- Something is no longer working the way it was supposed to
- A plan or idea suddenly fails or breaks down
- You want to sound fluent and natural in informal or semi-formal settings
It’s a great choice for:
- Workplace discussions
- Emails with casual tone
- Talking about relationships or real-life mess-ups
- Presenting risk or failure in a soft way
When NOT to use the idiom “Go South”
Avoid using the expression“go south” in very formal or sensitive conversations, like:
- Serious health issues
- Legal or life-threatening matters
- In highly official reports (replace it with “deteriorated” or “declined”)
Instead of:
“His health went south.”
Say:
“His health started deteriorating rapidly.”
Instead of:
“The company went south after the audit.”
Use:
“The company faced a significant decline after the audit.”
“When Things Go South” in Different Contexts
1. Workplace:
“The project was on track until we lost two key developers — then it all went south.”
Use this when highlighting risks or explaining failure without blaming someone directly.
2. Friendships/Relationships:
“We used to talk every day, but ever since she got promoted, our friendship’s gone south.”
Common in casual chats and emotional storytelling.
3. Startups & Business:
“We had investor interest and market traction — but after the product failed QA, things went south quickly.”
Great for storytelling in presentations, blogs, or startup conversations.
4. Travel & Daily Life:
“The trip started great, but when we missed our connecting flight, everything went south.”
More examples:
- Our vacation plans went south when the airline cancelled all flights.
- The deal was going well until the client backed out—then everything went south.
- Their relationship started to go south after they moved in together.
- The project went south because no one followed the timeline.
- My day really went south after I lost my phone.
Practice Exercise: Use It Yourself
Try completing the sentences below using the phrase “went south” or “go south”:
- We were about to close the deal, but then ______________.
- Our weekend plan was solid until ______________.
- I knew things would go south if we didn’t ______________.
- The team vibe went south the moment ______________.
- It was all going smoothly… and then it just ______________.
Related Idioms You Can Use With It
- “Down the drain” – to waste effort/money
“All that hard work went down the drain when the app crashed.” - “Fall apart” – when something breaks emotionally/structurally
“The plan fell apart because no one followed up.” - “Crash and burn” – a dramatic failure
“We tried a risky launch, and it just crashed and burned.”
The phrase “when things go south” is a smart, fluent way to describe failure, disappointment, or breakdown — without being dramatic.
It adds personality to your spoken English and makes you sound like someone who doesn’t just know English… but owns it.
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Practice set answers:
1. We were about to close the deal, but then the client changed their mind and everything went south
2. Our weekend plan was solid until the car broke down and the weather went south.
3. I knew things would go south if we didn’t double-check the budget and deadlines.
4. The team vibe went south the moment they heard about the leadership change.
5. It was all going smoothly… and then it just went south when the system crashed.
