I’m almost done with editing my novel for the ninth time, and one issue that keeps popping up is the “toward vs. towards” dilemma. Which one is correct? I’m happy to report that this grammar conundrum has a simple solution: it’s okay to use either.
According to Grammar Girl Mignon Fogarty and Dictionary.com (which sites the Chicago Manual of Style), the preferred use in American English is without the -s. The preferred form in British English includes the -s. This rule holds true for many directional words, like forward, backward, upward, and afterward.
In informal speaking or writing, either form is accepted. So I guess the best thing for me to do now is search for “towards” in my manuscript and make sure I take off the “s”. I’m guessing either form would be okay, as long as I’m consistent.
Are there any other word pairs that trip you up? Tell me about them, and I’ll tackle the trouble in a future post.
Thanks for stopping by!
I did not know that either one is okay – thank you for telling me! It’s funny – sometimes I will spell a word in the British way without even thinking about it, and spellcheck underlines it for me. I like moustache instead of mustache, but I try to stick with American English for consistency.
Ten edits? Wow. I just read a friend’s new ebook (pre-publication) and found five typos. I know she has proofed it many times, but I guess something always slips by. That must be nerve wracking!
Why can’t all rules be this easy? 😉
I know, right?!
I learned this rule during the copy-editing phase of The Caged Graves.
Still, my finger automatically adds that -s to the end of most -ward words. And then, when I’m editing my work, I take them out.
I think somebody sneaks into my manuscripts while I’m sleeping and puts them back in, though. Even if I go through a manuscript 10 times, I’ll always find one more “backwards” or “towards.”
LOL, Dianne. I’m editing my MS for about the tenth time, and I keep finding mistakes, like this wordy thing I tend to do with dialogue tags. Someone must be sneaking into my MS too. I’m trying very hard not to dismay and think, “I’ll never get it right!”