By or towards- - what's better?

Question

Can I say like that - " I'll be ready by Thursday / 5 o'clock/ etc.? "

Also, can I substitute the preposition "by" for "towards" without changing the meaning?

Answer 1

"by" is better

Answer 2

Yes, the meaning will be changed with however you are speaking or writing.   "I went by the lake"= you simply went by the lake,walking past, driving past~~or, then the correct grammar is "I went "to" the lake.  For "Towards"~~ I went towards the lake = you went in that direction you did not go by it you went "to" it in that direction.  Example~~ "He walked towards his home"= he walked to his home.  "He walked by his home" = he simply passed by his home (no direcrtion) >  Where "Towards" has a direction.  I hope this helped.

Answer 3

"By" sounds simple, easy to understand and conversational. "Towards" doesn't really sound that good.

Answer 4

towards is not the synonyms for by. i think you cannot use like this . their meaning is not same.

Answer 5

Oh way do you want to comlicate things? There's a time to be fancy and poetic and there's a time to keep it simple. By will do!!

Answer 6

"I will be ready towards Thursday," is a meaningless sentence.

"I will be ready by Thursday," means that you will be ready on or before Thursday.

The only possible cause of your uncertainty that I can think of is the use (particularly in colloquial American English) of phrases such as "I will be going by his house," which often actually means "I will be going to his house," but could also mean "I will be passing in the vicinity of his house but not stopping." I can see how, in this context, "going by" might be seen as equivalent to "going toward" his house, but that's not the meaning intended.

Answer 7

" I'll be ready by Thursday / 5 o'clock/ etc. "

The sentence is simple yet concise. I'd keep it as such.  

Answer 8

Towards is not a synonym for by. That means that one cannot substitute for the other because they do not mean the same.