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TO
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abbr.
turnover
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
to (t; təwhen unstressed)
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prep.
1.
a. In a direction toward so as to reach: went to the city.
b. Towards: turned to me.
2.
a. Reaching as far as: The ocean water was clear all the way to the bottom.
b. To the extent or degree of: loved him to distraction.
c. With the resultant condition of: nursed her back to health.
3. Toward a given state: helping minority women to economic equality.
4. In contact with; against: their faces pressed to the windows.
5. In front of: stood face to face.
6. Used to indicate appropriation or possession: looked for the top to the jar.
7. Concerning; regarding: waiting for an answer to my letter.
8. In a particular relationship with: The brook runs parallel to the road.
9. As an accompaniment or a complement of: danced to the tune.
10. Composing; constituting: two cups to a pint.
11. In accord with: job responsibilities suited to her abilities.
12. As compared with: a book superior to his others.
13.
a. Before: The time is ten to five.
b. Up till; until: worked from nine to five.
14.
a. For the purpose of: went out to lunch.
b. In honor of: a toast to the queen.
15.
a. Used before a verb to indicate the infinitive: I'd like to go.
b. Used alone when the infinitive is understood: Go if you want to.
16.
a. Used to indicate the relationship of a verb with its complement: refer to a dictionary; refer me to a dictionary.
b. Used with a reflexive pronoun to indicate exclusivity or separateness: had the plane to ourselves.
adv.
1. In one direction; toward a person or thing: owls with feathers wrong end to.
2. Into a shut or closed position: pushed the door to.
3. Into a state of consciousness: The patient came to.
4. Into a state of action or attentiveness: sat down for lunch and fell to.
5. Nautical Into the wind.
[Middle English, from Old English tō; see de- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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