towards
Pronouncedtuh-WARDZ
prepositionShows which direction someone or something is moving or pointing, as in 'walk towards the door'.
prepositionShows that something is being done to help reach a goal, as in 'save money towards a new bike'.
prepositionMeans close to or nearly at a time or place, as in 'towards the end of the day'.
prepositionShows what someone or something is about or concerning, as in 'be kind towards animals'.
Syllables
2 syllables
Letters
Phonics breakdown
Phonics Rule: Letter T
Sound“t”·/t/
The letter T makes the /t/ sound, like in 'top', 'tap', and 'ten'. The tongue tip taps behind the upper teeth.
T is a voiceless alveolar stop. The tongue tip touches the ridge behind the upper teeth and releases with a puff of air. Double T (tt) makes the same /t/ sound.
Tip
T taps — touch your tongue to make /t/!
Examples
The spelling 'ow' can make the long O sound “oh”, especially at the end of a word. It can also make the “ow” diphthong sound (like 'cow').
Tip
Snow falls slow — OW says long O!
Examples
Phonics Rule: W changes AR to “or”
Sound“or”·/ɔːr/
After W, the letters AR say “or” instead of “ar”, like in 'war' and 'warm'.
W changes the sound of AR: instead of the “ar” in 'car', AR after W says “or” (the 'or' sound): war, warm, ward, swarm, dwarf.
Tip
W changes AR to OR — war, warm, ward!
Examples
Phonics Rule: Letter D
Sound“d”·/d/
The letter D makes the /d/ sound, like in 'dog', 'day', and 'dig'. The tongue tip touches behind the upper teeth.
D is a voiced alveolar stop. The tongue tip touches the ridge just behind the upper front teeth, then releases with voice. It reliably makes the /d/ sound in almost all positions.
Tip
D is for dog — and dog starts with /d/!
Examples
Phonics Rule: Plural -S (/z/ sound)
Sound“z”·/z/
After a buzzing sound or a vowel, the plural ending says /z/ — like 'dogs' and 'shoes'.
Put a finger on your throat and say 'zzzz' — you feel a buzz. When the word ends in a buzzing (voiced) sound or a vowel, the plural ending buzzes too and says /z/. This happens whether the word is spelled -s (dogs) or -es (shoes, trees), because in shoes the e is silent and only the s is sounded. Most people never notice they are doing this.
Examples
What is SnapPhonics?
A phonics reference for teachers, parents and learners. Every English word, broken into the sounds that make it — with audio, syllables, and the rule behind each spelling.
Save words to study lists, build flashcard decks, and scan your own worksheets and books.