Word.ws English Dictionary

towards

Syllables: to·wardsUK/təˈwɔːdz/

More pronunciations (1)Fewer pronunciations

traditional/ˈtɔːdz/

towards is the alternative form of toward.

Meaning of toward

Preposition

toward

  1. (US) In the direction of.
    • She moved toward the door.
  2. (US) In relation to (someone or something).
    • What are your feelings toward him?
  3. (US) For the purpose of attaining (an aim).
    • I'm saving money toward retirement.
  4. (US) Located close to; near (a time or place).
    • Our place is over toward the station.

See all 10 meanings of toward

Adverb

towards (not comparable)

  1. In the direction of something (indicated by context).
    • Thus as he spake, lo far away they spyde / A varlet running towards hastily […]1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book II, Canto IV”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC

Adjective

towards (not comparable)

  1. Near; at hand; in state of preparation; toward.
    • We have a trifling foolish banquet towards.c. 1591–1595 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and...

Synonyms of towards

Antonyms

Origin of towards

From Middle English towardes, from Old English tōweardes, tōwærdes, equivalent to toward + -s (adverbial suffix).

Words formed from towards

Phrases with towards

5 more phrasesFewer phrases

Words that rhyme with towards

Questions about towards

What does towards mean?
Towards means in the direction of something (indicated by context).
What is towards the alternative form of?
Towards is the alternative form of toward.
What part of speech is towards?
Towards can be an adverb or an adjective.
How do you pronounce towards?
Towards is pronounced /təˈwɔːdz/ (UK).

Words near towards in the dictionary

  1. towardliest
  2. towardliness
  3. towardly
  4. towardness
  5. towardnesses
  6. towards
  7. towaway
  8. towaways
  9. towback
  10. towbacks
  11. towball

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: towards (page history and authors); toward (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-towards.ogg.

Cite this entry: “towards.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/towards. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.