Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - downward

 I. adverb  or ~s  Date: 13th century  1.  a. from a higher to a lower place  b. toward a direction that is the opposite of up  2. from a higher to a lower condition  3.  a. from an earlier time  b. from an ancestor or predecessor  II. adjective  Date: circa 1552  1. moving or extending ~  2. descending from a head, origin, or source  • ~ly adverb  • ~ness noun