Etymology From Middle English to, from Old English tō, from Proto-Germanic *tō ~ *ta, from Proto-Indo-European *de ~ *do (“to”). Cognate with Scots tae, to (“to”), North Frisian to, tö, tu (“to”), Saterland Frisian tou (“to”), Low German to (“to”), Dutch toe, te (“to”), German zu (“to”), West Frisian ta (“to”). Non-Germanic cognates include Albanian ndaj (“towards”), Irish do (“to, for”), Breton da (“to, for”), Welsh i (“to, for”), Russian до (do, “to”). Doublet of too.
1
A particle used for marking the following verb as an infinitive.
I want to leave.
He asked me what to do.
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I have places to go and people to see.
To err is human.
Who am I to criticise? I've done worse things myself.
Precisely to get away from you was why I did what I did.
2
As above, with the verb implied.
"Did you visit the museum?" "I wanted to, but it was closed."
If he hasn't read it yet, he ought to.
3
Used to indicate an obligation on the part of, or a directive given to, the subject.
You are to go to the store and buy a bottle of milk.
Etymology From Middle English to, from Old English tō, from Proto-Germanic *tō ~ *ta, from Proto-Indo-European *de ~ *do (“to”). Cognate with Scots tae, to (“to”), North Frisian to, tö, tu (“to”), Saterland Frisian tou (“to”), Low German to (“to”), Dutch toe, te (“to”), German zu (“to”), West Frisian ta (“to”). Non-Germanic cognates include Albanian ndaj (“towards”), Irish do (“to, for”), Breton da (“to, for”), Welsh i (“to, for”), Russian до (do, “to”). Doublet of too.
1
In order to.
Expressing purpose
I went to the shops to buy some bread.
to
prep
Etymology From Middle English to, from Old English tō, from Proto-Germanic *tō ~ *ta, from Proto-Indo-European *de ~ *do (“to”). Cognate with Scots tae, to (“to”), North Frisian to, tö, tu (“to”), Saterland Frisian tou (“to”), Low German to (“to”), Dutch toe, te (“to”), German zu (“to”), West Frisian ta (“to”). Non-Germanic cognates include Albanian ndaj (“towards”), Irish do (“to, for”), Breton da (“to, for”), Welsh i (“to, for”), Russian до (do, “to”). Doublet of too.
Indicating destination or final position: In the direction of, so as to arrive at or reach.
We are walking to the shop.
The water came right to the top of this wall.
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The coconut fell to the ground.
Driven by a perceived political need to adopt a hard-line stance, Mr. Cameron’s coalition government has imposed myriad new restrictions, the aim of which is to reduce net migration to Britain to below 100,000.2013 September 28, Kenan Malik, “London Is Special, but Not That Special”, in New York Times, retrieved 28 Sep 2013:
3
Used to indicate the target or recipient of an action.
I gave the book to him.
I spoke to him earlier.
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He devoted himself to education.
They drank to his health.
4
So as to contact, press against, impact, etc.
I fixed the notice to the wall.
Put your shoulder to the door.
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To clutch/clasp/hold/press one's hanky to one's mouth/nose/forehead.
5
So as to become or reach: indicating a terminal state resulting from an action.
His face was beaten to a pulp.
I sang my baby to sleep.
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Whisk the mixture to a smooth consistency.
6
So as to bring about or elicit (an effect or outcome).
He made several bad-taste jokes to groans from the audience.
I tried complaining, but it was to no effect.
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To everyone's great relief, the tuneless carol singers finally ceased their warbling.
7
Used after an adjective to indicate its application.
similar to ..., relevant to ..., pertinent to ..., I was nice to him, he was cruel to her, I am used to walking.
8
Indicating a degree or level reached.
It was to a large extent true.
We manufacture these parts to a very high tolerance.
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This gauge is accurate to a second.
My car does 25 miles to the gallon.
I started out by wrapping the first thread around a ruler for 1 inch and found that it had 24 wraps to the inch.2026, Tom Knisley, “Exploring S- and Z-Twist”, in Spin Off, volume L, number 1, page 42:
9
Used to describe what something consists of or contains.
Anyone could do this job; there's nothing to it.
There's a lot of sense to what he says.
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The name has a nice ring to it.
There are 100 pence to the pound.
10
Denotes the end of a range.
It takes 2 to 4 weeks to process typical applications.
With God to friend (with God as a friend); with The Devil to fiend (with the Devil as a foe); lambs slaughtered to lake (lambs slaughtered as a sacrifice); took her to wife (took her as a wife); was sold to slave (was sold as a slave).
12
Used to indicate a ratio or comparison; compared to, as against.
one to one = 1:1
ten to one = 10:1.
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I have ten dollars to your four.
The odds on that horse are seven to two.
The hoſt of Xerxes, which by fame is ſaid To drinke the mightie Parthian Araris, Was but a handfull to that we will haue.c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire; London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act II, scene iii:
In total, the Reds had 28 shots to their opponent's nine, and 15 corners to the Baggies' three.2012 April 22, Sam Sheringham, “Liverpool 0-1 West Brom”, in BBC Sport:
13
Arithmetic Used to indicate that the preceding term is to be raised to the power of the following value; indicates exponentiation.
Three squared or three to the second power is nine.
Etymology From Middle English to, from Old English tō, from Proto-Germanic *tō ~ *ta, from Proto-Indo-European *de ~ *do (“to”). Cognate with Scots tae, to (“to”), North Frisian to, tö, tu (“to”), Saterland Frisian tou (“to”), Low German to (“to”), Dutch toe, te (“to”), German zu (“to”), West Frisian ta (“to”). Non-Germanic cognates include Albanian ndaj (“towards”), Irish do (“to, for”), Breton da (“to, for”), Welsh i (“to, for”), Russian до (do, “to”). Doublet of too.
1
UK, US, Regional Toward a closed, touching, or engaging position.
Please push the door to.
He went in his room, pushed the door to, without fastening the latch.1913, D[avid] H[erbert] Lawrence, “chapter 12”, in Sons and Lovers, London: Duckworth & Co. […], →OCLC:
1 more example
Aware of the loud beating of my own heart I pulled the door to against the increasing rain.1925, F[rancis] Scott Fitzgerald, chapter V, in The Great Gatsby, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, page 104: