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onwards

adverb

Simple meaning

In a forward direction.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

ahnwerdz

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈɑnwɚdz

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

adverb

  1. In a forward direction

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
B2 · Upper Intermediate (estimated)
Frequency
Moderately Common
Typical Use
Neutral / general English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

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More ways to use onwards

  • “We packed our bags and moved onwards to the next town.”adverb

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

now onwards

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Similar Words, What’s the Difference?

Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.

  • onward

    In a forward direction.

  • forward

    In the direction in which someone or something is facing.

  • ahead

    At or towards the front.

  • forwards

    Synonym of forward in most senses.

Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Inflected forms

Grammatical variations of the same word.

  • onwardadverbBase word

    Forward in time or order or degree.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: in a forward direction

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.