Untoward

Origin of: Untoward

Untoward

Untoward means improper or unseemly and has enjoyed this meaning since the early 1600s. From this same time, its antonym, toward, enjoyed the opposite meaning in the sense of proper or favourable, but this meaning of toward has now fallen away. It is quite odd that the negative meanings of untoward should survive in the language while the positive meanings of toward should not.