Etymology

toward

to·ward
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Today it means: In the direction of. Full definition →

Middle English toward ← Old English tōweard ← Proto-West Germanic *tōward
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The story

  1. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*tōward
  2. Old English · inherited fromtōweard
  3. Middle English · inherited fromtoward
  4. English todaytoward

From Middle English toward, from Old English tōweard, from Proto-West Germanic *tōward, equivalent to to + -ward. Cognate with Middle Low German tôwart, Middle Dutch toewaert (Modern Dutch toewaarts), Middle High German zuowart, zūwart (Modern German zuwärts). Compare also Middle English tilward, tillward (“toward”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.