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"toward" in seven languages

Meaningtoward

Spanish

hacia

/ˈaθja/

other source · probably Old Spanish faz a 'facing' (Latin FACIEM 'face')

French

vers

/vɛʁ/

inherited

Italian

verso

/ˈvɛrso/

inherited

Portuguese

em direção a

/ẽj dʒiɾeˈsɐ̃w a/

other source · direção 'direction' (Latin DĪRECTIŌNEM)

Romanian

spre

/spre/

other source · Latin SUPER 'over, above'

Catalan

cap a

/ˈkap ə/

other source · cap 'head' (Latin CAPUT) + a 'to'

English

toward

/təˈwɔɹd/

native English · Old English tōweard

Its -ward shares an Indo-European root 'to turn' with Latin VERSUS.

English → ItaliantowardversoNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: versus, reverse, convert, version.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

VERSUS‘turned toward’

All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.

The story

French and Italian go 'turned toward' (VERSUS); Spanish goes 'face to', and its silent h is the old f of FACIEM.

English relatives: versus, reverse, convert, version

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In a sentence

  • esCaminó hacia la puerta.
  • frElle a marché vers la porte.
  • itHa camminato verso la porta.
  • ptEla caminhou em direção à porta.
  • roA mers spre ușă.
  • caVa caminar cap a la porta.
  • enShe walked toward the door.

More words from the same Latin

More in Little words

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