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
Bosley Crowther3
—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
: 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
Nadeen Ebrahim,
CNN Money,
4 July 2026
The Sonic at 4025 Mapleshade Lane was found to have liquid leaking from the ceiling onto the cooking surfaces.
—
Mary Ella Hastings
july 3,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
4 July 2026
His second attempt rifled across the box, just over a defender’s head and onto the foot of Jhon Arias near the back post.
—
Blair Kerkhoff,
Kansas City Star,
4 July 2026
The software platform aims to improve how storage devices process data locally as more AI workloads move from cloud infrastructure onto edge systems.
—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
3 July 2026
See All Example Sentences for onto
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Preposition
Water jets sprayed mist onto the crowd of mourners, who mostly wore black, with temperatures set to reach 36 degrees Celsius (97 degrees Fahrenheit), according to a forecast from the UK’s Met Office.
—
Nadeen Ebrahim,
CNN Money,
4 July 2026
The Sonic at 4025 Mapleshade Lane was found to have liquid leaking from the ceiling onto the cooking surfaces.
—
Mary Ella Hastings
july 3,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
4 July 2026
His second attempt rifled across the box, just over a defender’s head and onto the foot of Jhon Arias near the back post.
—
Blair Kerkhoff,
Kansas City Star,
4 July 2026
The software platform aims to improve how storage devices process data locally as more AI workloads move from cloud infrastructure onto edge systems.
—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
3 July 2026
See All Example Sentences for onto
Cite this Entry
“Onto.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/onto. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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