Top Definitions
Quiz
Related Content
To Vs. Too Vs. Two
Examples
British

to

[ too; unstressed too, tuh ]

/ tu; unstressed tʊ, tə /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for to on Thesaurus.com

preposition

(used for expressing motion or direction toward a point, person, place, or thing approached and reached, as opposed to from): They came to the house.

(used for expressing direction or motion or direction toward something) in the direction of; toward: from north to south.

(used for expressing limit of movement or extension): He grew to six feet.

(used for expressing contact or contiguity) on; against; beside; upon: a right uppercut to the jaw; Apply varnish to the surface.

(used for expressing a point of limit in time) before; until: to this day; It is ten minutes to six. We work from nine to five.

(used for expressing aim, purpose, or intention): going to the rescue.

(used for expressing destination or appointed end): sentenced to jail.

(used for expressing agency, result, or consequence): to my dismay; The flowers opened to the sun.

(used for expressing a resulting state or condition): He tore it to pieces.

(used for expressing the object of inclination or desire): They drank to her health.

(used for expressing the object of a right or claim): claimants to an estate.

(used for expressing limit in degree, condition, or amount): wet to the skin; goods amounting to $1000; Tomorrow's high will be 75 to 80°.

(used for expressing addition or accompaniment) with: He added insult to injury. They danced to the music. Where is the top to this box?

(used for expressing attachment or adherence): She held to her opinion.

(used for expressing comparison or opposition): inferior to last year's crop; The score is eight to seven.

(used for expressing agreement or accordance) according to; by: a position to one's liking; to the best of my knowledge.

(used for expressing reference, reaction, or relation): What will he say to this?

(used for expressing a relative position): parallel to the roof.

(used for expressing a proportion of number or quantity) in; making up: 12 to the dozen; 20 miles to the gallon.

(used for indicating the indirect object of a verb, for connecting a verb with its complement, or for indicating or limiting the application of an adjective, noun, or pronoun): Give it to me. I refer to your work.

(used as the ordinary sign or accompaniment of the infinitive, as in expressing motion, direction, or purpose, in ordinary uses with a substantive object.)

Mathematics. raised to the power indicated: Three to the fourth is 81 (34= 81).

adverb

toward a point, person, place, or thing, implied or understood.

toward a contact point or closed position:Pull the door to.

toward a matter, action, or work: We turned to with a will.

into a state of consciousness; out of unconsciousness: after he came to.

VIDEO FOR TO

What Is The Actual Definition Of The Word "To"?

There’s no real definition for the word "to" because it's a word that primarily just serves a function … 22 of them, actually. Yup, there are 22 uses for the preposition “to.”

MORE VIDEOS FROM DICTIONARY.COM

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about to

to and fro. fro (def. 2).

Origin of to

before 900; Middle English, Old English tō; cognate with Dutch te, toe,German zu

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH to

to , too, two

Words nearby to

tng., T-note, tnpk., TNT, T number, to, toa, toad, toad bug, toadeater, to a degree

Other definitions for to (2 of 3)

t.o.

abbreviation

turnover.

turn over.

Other definitions for to (3 of 3)

T.O.

or TO

abbreviation

telegraph office.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

TO VS. TOO VS. TWO

What's the difference between to, too, and two?

To is a very common word that performs many different functions, such as expressing direction (I’m driving to the office) or contact (Pin it to the wall), indicating an object or recipient (Give it to me), or setting a range (9 to 5) or limit (These go to 11). Too means also (I’m going, too) or to an excessive degree (too much). Two is the number equal to one plus one.

The words are used in very different ways: to is most commonly used as a preposition, too is an adverb, and two is a number that can be used as a noun or an adjective.

Perhaps the most common mistake involving the three words is using to when it should be too, or vice versa. Remember, if you mean to, don’t use too many o’s!

Here’s an example of to, too, and two used correctly in the same sentence.

Example: We went to two two-star restaurants, and it was two two-star restaurants too many!

Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between to, too, and two.

Quiz yourself on to vs. too vs. two!

Should to, too, or two be used in the following sentence?

I like pizza, _____, you know.

How to use to in a sentence

What 15 months in a federal correction institution will be like, according to a man who counsels to-be inmates.
How a ‘Real Housewife’ Survives Prison: ‘I Don’t See [Teresa Giudice] Having a Cakewalk Here’|Michael Howard|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
That means the F-35 will be almost entirely reliant on long-range air-to-air missiles.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019|Dave Majumdar|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It will still carry a pair of Raytheon AIM-120 AMRAAM long-range air-to-air missiles and a pair of bombs.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019|Dave Majumdar|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The lack of a gun is not likely to be a major problem for close-in air-to-air dogfights against other jets.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019|Dave Majumdar|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Well, the numbers tell us so, as do all of our day-to-day interactions, just as the president said.
Obama Is Right on Race. The Media Is Wrong.|Keli Goff|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Each day she resolved, "To-morrow I will tell Felipe;" and when to-morrow came, she put it off again.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson
All the operations of her brain related themselves somehow to to-morrow afternoon.
Hilda Lessways|Arnold Bennett
"Buy something for your wife that-is-to-be," he said to his grand-nephew, as he handed him the folded paper.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
Something remote and ancient stirred in her, something that was not of herself To-day, something half primitive, half barbaric.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
To-day I'm more dead than alive, as we had a lesson from him yesterday that lasted four hours.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay

British Dictionary definitions for to (1 of 2)

to¹

/ (tuː, unstressed before a vowel tʊ, unstressed before a consonant tə) /

preposition

used to indicate the destination of the subject or object of an actionhe climbed to the top

used to mark the indirect object of a verb in a sentencetelling stories to children

used to mark the infinitive of a verbhe wanted to go

as far as; untilworking from Monday to Friday

used to indicate equality16 ounces to the pound

against; upon; ontoput your ear to the wall

before the hour offive minutes to four

accompanied bydancing to loud music

as compared with, as againstthe score was eight to three

used to indicate a resulting conditionhe tore her dress to shreds; they starved to death

a dialect word for at 1 he's to town; where's it to?

adverb

towards a fixed position, esp (of a door) closed

Word Origin for to

Old English tō; related to Old Frisian, Old Saxon to, Old High German zuo, Latin do- as in dōnec until

British Dictionary definitions for to (2 of 2)

to²

the internet domain name for

Tonga

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012