homeward

Everyday

1. Towards home, as in «We walked homeward». tree →
2. (adjective) Going towards home, as in «the homeward journey». tree →

In the lessons

In stories and poems, characters turn «homeward» at the end of an adventure; Odysseus is «homeward bound». In everyday life it is a slightly formal way to say «going home». In maths problems, «the homeward journey» is the trip back, often on the same distance: 12 km out and 12 km homeward is 24 km in all.

Examples

• After the match, we started our homeward journey. tree →
• The tired walkers turned homeward as it got dark. tree →
• Birds fly homeward in spring. tree →
• The ship was homeward bound. tree →
• The homeward trip took longer because of traffic. tree →
• We walked homewards across the fields. tree →
• We wandered silently homeward across the mountains. tree →

Note

«Homeward» and «homewards» mean the same; «homewards» is more British as an adverb, while the adjective is always «homeward». «-ward» means «in the direction of», as in «forward», «backward».