So, I've noticed over time that I see both "afterward" and "afterwards" at different times. Having a pet peeve (though I'm not certain it's actually a well-founded prejudice, lexicographically speaking) against hearing "anyways", I've started to wonder recently about "afterwards".
With a quick bit of web searching, I turned up this analysis, which I find to be somewhat helpful, I'm just wondering if there's more that people could say to help me get an intuitive understanding of when to use which, or otherwise why to use one versus the other.
I suppose (as mentioned in the linked article) this question could also apply to forward, backward, toward, etc.
Which shall I use? When? Why? Does the 's' indicate some sort of plural meaning, or something else?
Best Answer
Afterward[s]: As someone with a background in British English who has studied and lived in the US over the past four years, I would say that "afterwards" is more commonly used in the British, while "afterward" is chiefly found in American usage. To confirm this, I sampled various dictionaries online, both American and British.
However, this does not always follow for words such as "forward[s]", "backward[s]", etc. I will deal with each case separately, treating them all as adverbs:
Forward[s]: The form "forwards" is rarely ever used in today's English, whether British or American. With or without the "s", the meaning remains unchanged.
Backward[s]: Again, "backward" is chiefly American, while "backwards" is certainly almost always used in the British. (As an adjective, though, "backward" is the correct usage, never with the "s".)
Toward[s]: The form "towards" is the British usage, while "toward" is the American.
Suffixation: Of course, the suffix "-ward[s]" can be tagged onto any word to indicate direction, as in "heavenward", "landward", and so on. As a general rule, it is strictly "-ward" in all adjectives, while adverbs could be "-ward" or "-wards," depending on the user.
And no, the "s" does not indicate plurality.