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ward
[ wawrd ]
/ wɔrd /
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noun
verb (used with object)
OTHER WORDS FOR ward
QUIZ
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Test how much you really know about regular and irregular plural nouns with this quiz.
Question 1 of 9
Which of the following nouns has an irregular plural form?
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
wardless, adjectiveWords nearby ward
war cloud, war correspondent, war crime, war crimes, war cry, ward, war dance, warded, ward eight, warden, wardenry
Other definitions for ward (2 of 3)
Ward
[ wawrd ]
/ wɔrd /
noun
Other definitions 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.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use ward in a sentence
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, adjectiveWord 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 towardsa 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
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
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.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.