Writing 101: The Difference Between Toward and Towards

Are you moving toward success with your writing...or towards it? Make sure your use of grammar in writing isn't untoward, and figure out what your words mean before you use them. That's right: it's time to find the real difference between toward and towards. There's got to be some reason they're two different words...right?


 Toward vs. Towards

In the dictionary, toward means in the direction of. Contrary-wise, towards means toward (seriously, go look it up). Basically, the takeaway from this is that there is no difference whatsoever between the two words.

So which one are you supposed to be using? Either one you like. Both words have the same meaning, and I'm pretty certain the letter s simply showed up at the end of toward in order to confuse writers. The no-s version is actually more common in American English, while towards is more frequently seen in British English. Whichever one you like the best is the one you ought to use. Change 'em up, switch 'em around, use them both with maniacal glee -- you pretty much can't go wrong unless you totally ignore the definition. Usually, the addition of the s changes the meaning of words...but not in this case. Toward and towards just happen to be a strange word pair that know no rules, so feel free to go crazy.

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