Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
-wards
{
. -ward
(wẽrd)
, -wards
(wẽrdz)
}[AS. , and cf.
-weard
, -weardes
; akin to OS. & OFries. -ward
. OHG. -wert
, G. -wärts
, Icel. -verðr
, Goth. -vaírþs
, L. vertere
to turn, versus
toward, and E. worth
to become. √143. See Worth
. Verb.
I.
Verse
. Adverbs ending in -wards
(AS. -weardes
) and some other adverbs, such as besides
, betimes
, since
(OE. sithens
). etc., were originally genitive forms used adverbially.] Suffixes denoting course or direction to; motion or tendency toward; as in backward, or backwards; toward, or towards, etc.
-wards
.See
-ward
. Definition 2024
-wards
-wards
English
Suffix
-wards
- Forming adverbs denoting course or direction to, or motion or tendency toward, as in "backwards", "towards", etc.
Usage notes
- The choice between -ward and -wards is individual or dialectal; both are widely used.
- Adverbs ending in -wards (Anglo-Saxon -weardes) and some other adverbs, such as besides, betimes, since Old English sithens, etc., originated as genitive forms used adverbially.
Derived terms
<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs14 CategoryTreeLabelCategory' href='/wiki/Category:English_words_suffixed_with_-wards'>English words suffixed with -wards</a>