ward

[ wawrd ]
/ wɔrd /

noun

verb (used with object)

Origin of ward

before 900; (noun) Middle English warde, Old English weard; (v.) Middle English warden, Old English weardian; cognate with Middle Dutch waerden, German warten; cf. guard

OTHER WORDS FROM ward

ward·less, adjective

Definition for ward (2 of 3)

Ward
[ wawrd ]
/ wɔrd /

noun

Definition for ward (3 of 3)

-ward

a native English suffix denoting spatial or temporal direction, as specified by the initial element: toward; seaward; afterward; backward.
Also -wards.

Origin of -ward

Middle English; Old English -weard towards; cognate with German -wärts; akin to Latin vertere to turn (see verse)

usage note for -ward

Both -ward and -wards occur in such words as backward, forward, upward, and toward. The -ward form is by far the more common in edited American English writing.

Example sentences from the Web for ward

British Dictionary definitions for ward (1 of 3)

ward
/ (wɔːd) /

noun

verb

(tr) archaic to guard or protect
See also ward off

Derived forms of ward

wardless, adjective

Word Origin for ward

Old English weard protector; related to Old High German wart, Old Saxon ward, Old Norse vorthr. See guard

British Dictionary definitions for ward (2 of 3)

Ward
/ (wɔːd) /

noun

Dame Barbara (Mary), Baroness Jackson. 1914–81, British economist, environmentalist, and writer. Her books include Spaceship Earth (1966)
Mrs Humphry, married name of Mary Augusta Arnold. 1851–1920, English novelist. Her novels include Robert Elsmere (1888) and The Case of Richard Meynell (1911)
Sir Joseph George. 1856–1930, New Zealand statesman; prime minister of New Zealand (1906–12; 1928–30)

British Dictionary definitions for ward (3 of 3)

-ward

suffix

(forming adjectives) indicating direction towards a backward step; heavenward progress
(forming adverbs) a variant and the usual US and Canadian form of -wards

Word Origin for -ward

Old English -weard towards

Medical definitions for ward

ward
[ wôrd ]

n.

A room in a hospital usually holding six or more patients.
A division in a hospital for the care of a particular group of patients.