Untoward

The adjective untoward (occasionally substituted in the 16th century by untowards, but not since then) is not much used in current English, but is still more often used than its negative, or opposite: toward (adjective). When untoward is used as an adjective, its meaning is the opposite to, or negative of, the adjective 'toward', not that of the adverb or preposition toward[s]. Its meanings may be summarized as:

• first (and obsolete by the eighteenth century) 'not inclined to do something [for reasons either of character or of ability]', 'difficult to manage', 'stubborn' or 'stiff', applied first
  • to people and animals (like cattle or horses), and then to
  • things, such as clay, or hair, or the material a writer is struggling to express, or any other material with which any other craftsman is working.

Untoward in this sense is opposed to toward, meaning when used of young people, 'promising', 'making good progress'. However, in recent times tha adjective most used in this way (as an opposite of 'toward' as 'promising', 'docile', 'amenable' or 'teachable') has been froward.)

• Untoward is nowadays more commonly used as an opposite of 'toward' meaning 'propitious', 'favourable'. So untoward means 'unfavourable', 'unsuitable', 'unfortunate', 'ill-starred' or 'doomed'. It is commonly applied to conditions, such as the weather, roads, or simply 'the times'.

Froward, untoward and wayward are all, in their different ways, antonyms of toward.