onto

1 of 2

preposition

on·​to ˈȯn-(ˌ)tü 

ˈän-

1

: to a position on

We climbed onto the roof.

Turn left onto Fifth Avenue.

2

: in or into a state of awareness about

put me onto your methods

was onto something that should have been pursued further

—Bosley Crowther

3

—used as a function word to indicate a set each element of which is the image of at least one element of another set

a function mapping the set S onto the set T

onto

2 of 2

adjective

: mapping elements in such a way that every element in one set is the image of at least one element in another set

a function that is one-to-one and onto

Examples of onto in a Sentence

Preposition

We climbed onto the building's roof.

The book fell onto the floor.

The water spilled onto the floor.

The cowboy leaped onto his horse.

Transfer the data onto a disk.

Turn left onto Third Street at the traffic light.

Recent Examples on the Web

Preposition

The pair then headed out onto the lawn to greet some of the guests. —Stephanie Petit, People.com, 14 May 2025

Earth and minerals are loaded onto trucks at an open-pit mine near the frontline, despite the threat of bombing by Russian invading forces on February 26, 2025 in Donetsk Region, Ukraine. —Sam Meredith, CNBC, 14 May 2025

Iraola then changed midway through the first half, with Scott pushing onto Konsa and Cook on Amadou Onana. —Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 14 May 2025

According to the statement, de Lara discovered that the sun probably shined directly onto the statue during summer mornings, meaning that during the Panathenaea, a summer festival celebrating Athena, the goddess’ likeness acted as a shining beacon at the start of each day. —Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Preposition

1581, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1942, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing onto

• build onto
• fasten onto
• get on/onto the subject of
• get onto
• give onto
• latch onto
• lock onto
• map onto
• onto something
• project onto
• stumble across/on/onto/upon
• voted on/onto

Kids Definition

onto

preposition

on·​to

ˌȯn-tə,

ˌän-;

ˈȯn-tü,

ˈän-

1

: to a position on or against

leaped onto the horse

climbed onto the roof

2

: in a state of knowing about or becoming aware of

I'm onto their little game