Who says "anyways" is not a word

Question

Isn't the word " anyways " a plural form of the word " anyway "? I don't see why it's not. I'll wait here to be corrected.

Answer 1

No, it's not a plural marking. Both words are adverbs and they both mean the same thing (except "anyways" is only used in some dialects). English doesn't have plural adverbs. The "s", in essence, is meaningless.

Specifically, the word is used in some American English dialects. One site says:

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary of English Usage cites the Dictionary of American Regional English to note that anyways is apparently strongest in the South and South Midland (both U.S.) dialect regions.

However, it is much more widespread than those two regions, since it is used in my dialect, which is North Midland.

---

Etymologically, according to the OED, the word was originally written "eanies weis", with both "any" and "way" being written in the genitive singular case (this was in early Middle English). A little later (still in Middle English), only "way" was written with the genitive singular ending, with "any" just being written normal.

You can see this same -s ending on forward(s) and backward(s). Although it doesn't look it (because the spelling and sometimes pronunciation has changed), it's also the basis for the ending of words like amid(st), and also words like once and then(ce) (see also here).

(You don't need to know the etymology to use the word or any of the other words I mentioned, so don't let this section confuse you.)

Answer 2

"Anyways" does appear in some dictionaries, where it is defined as:

informal or dialect form of anyway.

It is also predominately North American.

As to your question of "who says it" - it is apparently common in some dialects, so there may be regions of North America where it is used in informal speech. I have also heard it used myself here in the UK, but I discern that people are using it deliberately knowing that it is incorrect, either in imitation of the aforementioned dialects or perhaps ironically.

Reading your subsequent comments though, I'm not sure you actually mean the word "anyway". This is not a contraction of "any way", which could be used in the plural, for example:

Are there any ways around this roadblock?

Which could just as easily be asked in the singular:

Is there any way around this roadblock?

The only difference is that the first question is open to the possibility that there might be more than one way, while the second does not make that assumption.

If you do in fact mean the two separate words "any way" then the latter word could be plural depending on the context.

Answer 3

I was bored and I stumbled across this post.. anyway, I thought I could figuratively throw my hat into the ring. After reading all the posts I have drawn the conclusion that there is literally no place in conversation for plural adverbs. Adding an S to anyway is grammatically incorrect and is just a North American colloquialism which is slowly creeping into other English speaking countries. The only possible way to correctly place an S after anyway would be when referring to it as a noun. I have used several anyways in my comment.