towards
/təˈwɔːdz/ (bre, ipa) · /tɔːrdz/ (ame, ipa)
towards — 介系詞
1. used to say where a person or thing is going, pointing, or looking, or that they
朝；向
指向或靠近某處的方向
used to say where a person or thing is going, pointing, or looking, or that they are getting nearer to a particular person, place, or thing — for example, walking towards a door or turning your head towards a speaker.
Daichi threw the ball towards Faisal, but it landed in the bushes.
Daichi 把球朝 Faisal 丟過去，但球掉進了灌木叢裡。
towards + noun (direction with verb of motion: threw)
A black car was driving towards the bridge at high speed.
一輛黑色轎車正高速朝橋的方向駛去。
towards + noun (direction with driving)
Yasmin turned her head towards the window when she heard a noise outside.
Yasmin 聽到外面有聲音，便把頭轉向窗戶。
The children ran towards the playground as soon as the bell rang.
鈴聲一響，孩子們便朝操場跑去。
Christopher pointed towards the mountain and said that was their destination.
Christopher 指向遠方的那座山，說那就是他們的目的地。
- toward
American English variant; identical meaning and use
- in the direction of
more formal and longer, used mostly in written English
- away from
indicates opposite direction of movement
文法句型
towards + noun/pronoun (physical direction)
用法筆記
Commonly appears after verbs of motion or direction — 'walk', 'run', 'drive', 'fly', 'move', 'point', 'look', 'turn'. In American English, 'toward' (without -s) is equally standard and more frequent.
常見錯誤
2. showing how a person feels, thinks, or behaves in relation to someone or somethi
對待；關於
表示對某人或某事的感受或態度
showing how a person feels, thinks, or behaves in relation to someone or something — for example, having a kind attitude towards a neighbour, or feeling angry towards a company.
Dario has a very positive attitude towards learning new languages.
Dario 對學習新語言抱持非常正面的態度。
attitude + towards + gerund phrase
The government's policy towards small businesses has become more supportive recently.
政府對小型企業的政策近來變得更加支持。
policy + towards + noun phrase
Camila was full of anger towards the person who stole her bag.
Camila 對那個偷她包包的人充滿了憤怒。
Teachers should show patience towards students who are still learning the basics.
老師應該對還在學習基礎知識的學生展現耐心。
Asher's feelings towards his old school are warm because the teachers helped him a lot.
Asher 對母校的感情很溫暖，因為老師們幫助他很多。
文法句型
feeling/attitude + towards + noun/pronoun
用法筆記
Common in patterns where an abstract noun or adjective describing an emotion or reaction is followed by 'towards' + the target of that emotion: 'attitude towards', 'feelings towards', 'kind towards', 'hostile towards'.
常見錯誤
3. somewhere close to a certain moment, day, or location, often used with expressio
將近；接近
接近某個時間點或位置
somewhere close to a certain moment, day, or location, often used with expressions like 'the end of the day', 'midnight', or 'the top of the hill' — for example, arriving towards evening or sitting towards the back of the room.
The café gets busy towards lunchtime, so come early to get a seat.
這家咖啡館接近午餐時間時會很忙，所以早點來才能有位子。
towards + time noun (lunchtime)
Towards the end of the film, the audience was in tears over the sad ending.
接近電影尾聲時，全場觀眾都因為悲傷的結局而落淚。
towards the end of + noun
Hassan started to feel tired towards midnight, so he went to bed.
Hassan 將近午夜時開始感到疲倦，於是就去睡覺了。
The weather turns cold towards November in the northern parts of the country.
在該國北部，天氣接近十一月時就會轉冷。
Élise spotted her friend sitting towards the back of the lecture hall.
Élise 看到她的朋友坐在靠近演講廳後方的位子。
- toward
American English variant; identical meaning and use
- close to
more general; works for both time and physical proximity
- approaching
more literary; implies gradual movement towards a point
文法句型
towards + time expression (the end of..., midnight, etc.)
用法筆記
With time expressions, 'towards' means 'close to but not exactly at' that time. It does not mean 'until' or 'up to'. For spatial position, it is often used with 'the back', 'the front', 'the top', or 'the bottom'.
常見錯誤
4. intended to help achieve or pay for something — for example, saving money toward
有助；用於
為了達成某目標或購買某物
intended to help achieve or pay for something — for example, saving money towards a new car, working towards a promotion, or donating money towards medical research.
Kasia is saving money towards a down payment on a flat near the station.
Kasia 正在存錢，準備用於支付車站附近一間公寓的頭期款。
save + towards + noun (financial goal)
The engineering team has been working hard towards finishing the bridge by next summer.
工程團隊一直努力朝著明年夏天完工的目標邁進。
work + towards + gerund (achievement goal)
Bake sale money will go towards new books for the school library.
義賣活動的收入將用於為學校圖書館購買新書。
Faisal puts some of his salary towards paying off his student loan.
Faisal 把一部分薪水用來償還他的學貸。
The charity received a donation that will go towards clean water for the village.
該慈善機構收到一筆捐款，將用於為村莊提供乾淨的飲用水。
- toward
American English variant; identical meaning and use
- for
simpler and more general; less precise about gradual contribution
- as a contribution to
more formal; often used in financial and charity contexts
文法句型
verb + towards + noun/gerund (purpose or contribution)
用法筆記
Often pairs with verbs of financial contribution ('save', 'put', 'donate', 'go') and verbs of effort ('work', 'strive', 'aim'). After 'towards', use a noun or a gerund (-ing form) — never a bare infinitive.