-ways

suffix forming adjectives and adverbs of direction or manner (sideways) (cf. -WISE).
Etymology: WAY + -'S

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\\ˌwāzfl>adverb suffix\

Etymology: Middle English -ways, -weys, from ways, weyes, wayes, gen. of way, wey way — more at way

: in (such) a way, course, direction, or manner

sideways

barways

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a suffix appearing in native English adverbs: always; sideways.

[ME; see WAY¹, -S¹]

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-ways /-wāz/

suffix

Forming adverbs and adjectives of direction and manner, as in sideways, edgeways

ORIGIN: ↑way¹

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-ways UK [weɪz] US suffix

in a particular direction used with some nouns

sideways

Thesaurus: suffixes_hyponym

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way|ward|en «WAY _WR duhn», noun.

Especially British. a person elected to supervise highways, usually as a member of an official board.

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suffix forming adjectives and adverbs of direction or manner

edgeways | lengthways. Compare with -wise

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-ways [-ways] suffix

(in adjectives and adverbs) in the direction of

•

lengthways

•

sideways

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-ways

the terminal element of certain advs., was originally a use of the genitive of way n.¹

1. Many phrases consisting of the genitive of way (in various senses) qualified by an adj., were formerly used adverbially (see way n.¹ 23 a). The earliest known examples are in the Peterborough Chronicle (first hand, a.d. 1124) which twice has óðres weᵹes in the sense ‘by another route’; in this phrase the adj. appears uninflected before the end of the 12th c. (see otherways). Similarly alles weis, nanes (nones) weis occur early in the 13th c., becoming always, noways in the 14th c. On the analogy of these words were subsequently formed † everyways (1398), anyways, † likeways (16th c.), and (from descriptive adjs.) crossways, longways, straightways (16th c.), broadways (18th c.).

2. A solitary instance of an adv. f. n. + -ways before the 16th c. is † needways ‘necessarily’, occurring in the Cursor M. (a 1300) and in Barbour. In the later formations the general sense is ‘in a specified direction’; so endways, lengthways, sideways (16th c.), edgeways, breadthways (17th c.), sternways (19th c.), sunways.

3. As there is no perceptible difference of function between the adverbial genitive and the adverbial accusative, most of the advs. in -ways have synonyms in -way. Further, most of the advs. in -ways are synonymous with actual or possible parallel formations in -wise; and the similarity of sound of the two suffixes has given rise to the notion that they are mere alternative forms of one and the same ending. Johnson's erroneous statement (s.v. Way) that ‘way and ways are often used corruptly for -wise’ has probably led many to prefer -wise to -ways or -way on the ground of supposed correctness. Cf. alway, always, † alwise; anyway, anyways, anywise; breadthways, -wise; broadway, -ways, -wise; crossway, -ways, -wise; edgeway, -ways, -wise; endway, -ways; everyway, † -ways; lengthways, -wise; † likeways (obs.), likewise; longways, -wise; noway, -ways, -wise; otherways, -wise; sideway, -ways, -wise; straightway, -ways, † -wise; sunway, -ways, -wise.

4. The combinations of -ways are, unlike those of -way, hardly ever used as adjs., with the exception of sideways.