A: A movie starring Jake Gyllenhaal will be in Chinese theaters early next month. I don’t quite understand why it’s called “Southpaw.”

    B: It’s about a left-handed boxer who tries to get his life back on track after losing his wife in a tragic accident and his daughter to child protection services.

    Note: A southpaw is a left-hander or the left hand. Today, the word is primarily used in baseball, but appears in other contexts as well. But despite its use in baseball, the term almost certainly did not originate with that sport. The “south” is most likely just a reference to the opposite orientation than is usual and the paw is self-explanatory. An 1848 political cartoon depicted Whig vice presidential candidate — and future president — Millard Fillmore lying battered on the ground after being punched by the left hand of Democratic presidential candidate Lewis Cass and lamenting, “Curse the old hoss wot a south paw he has given me!”