Back to Blog

The Direction Deception: When "TO" Disappears and Reappears

Last month, my intermediate student shared a frustrating experience. He'd been giving directions to his office during a business call with American partners. Everything he said was grammatically correct, but something felt "off" to his listeners.

"I told them to go to north, then go to downtown, then go to upstairs," he explained. "But they kept looking at me strange."

Taro had discovered something that confuses even advanced English learners: direction language follows rules that are sometimes hard to use.

The Direction Logic Map

English directions use two different systems depending on what type of destination you're describing:

System 1: Nouns (use TO)

  • Head TO the office
  • Drive TO the airport

System 2: Adverbs (no TO)

  • Go north
  • Head upstairs
  • Drive straight

The confusion happens because some words can be either nouns OR adverbs depending on context. It is sometimes difficult to know when a word is a noun and when it is an adverb.

The Place vs Direction Test

Ask yourself: "Is this an adverb or a noun?"

Adverbs (no TO):

  • Downtown
  • North
  • Home

**Nouns **:

  • Your house
  • school
  • The office

The Business Navigation Reality

In professional settings, you'll mostly give specific destination directions:

Natural business directions:

  • "Go TO the main entrance"
  • "Head TO the elevator bank"
  • "Walk TO the reception desk"
  • "Drive TO the parking garage"

Awkward business directions:

  • "Go the main entrance" (missing TO)
  • "Head at the elevator bank" (wrong preposition)
  • "Walk the reception desk" (missing TO)

The Compass Case

Compass directions (north, south, east, west) never use TO in natural speech:

Natural: "Drive north for two blocks"
Unnatural: "Drive to north for two blocks"

Natural: "The office is south of the station"
Unnatural: "The office is to south of the station"

But areas named after compass directions do use TO:

Natural: "Go TO the North end" Natural: "Drive TO the South Building"

The Building Navigation Code

Inside buildings, here are some examples:

adverbs (no TO):

  • "Go upstairs"
  • "Head downstairs"
  • "Take the elevator down"

Nouns (need TO):

  • "Go TO the left wing"
  • "Head TO the north corridor"
  • "Walk TO the break room"

Floor references (use TO):

  • "Go TO the third floor"
  • "Head TO the basement"
  • "Take the elevator TO the top floor"

The Landmark Strategy

When giving business directions, use landmarks as destinations (need TO):

"Go TO the Starbucks, then head TO the glass building, then walk TO the main entrance."

This pattern sounds natural and helps listeners visualize the route clearly.

Common Business Direction Mistakes

Mistake 1: "Go to upstairs to the meeting room"
Correct: "Go upstairs TO the meeting room"
Why: Upstairs is an adverb; meeting room is noun (place)

Mistake 2: "Drive to south to get to downtown"
Correct: "Drive south TO get downtown"
Why: South is an adverb; downtown is an adverb

Mistake 3: "Walk to left to the conference room"
Correct: "Turn left TO get TO the conference room"
Why: Left is an adverb; conference room is a noun

Your Direction Fluency Practice

Week 1: Practice the place vs direction test with every route you take
Week 2: Give directions to your office
Week 3: Listen for direction patterns in business English media
Week 4: Help visitors navigate your building using direction language

Your Navigation Confidence

Master these patterns, and you'll sound like someone who belongs in the business environment, not like someone who needs help finding their way around.

When you give directions confidently, people trust your other business communication skills more. When you sound uncertain about simple navigation, they wonder about your overall competence.

The Bottom Line

Natural direction language is rule based. It's about understanding nouns and adverbs that native speakers use automatically.

Adverbs don’t need TO. Nouns need TO.

Simple system. Powerful results.

Next time you give directions to your office, you'll sound like someone who knows exactly where they're going—and how to help others get there too.