diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.md b/CONTRIBUTING.md
index 4ccb59aa2df443..e9a47c7322e476 100644
--- a/CONTRIBUTING.md
+++ b/CONTRIBUTING.md
@@ -166,9 +166,9 @@ Maintaining dozens of npm packages is difficult—it can be tough to keep track
 
 The developer who proposes a change (pull request) is responsible to choose the correct version increment (`major`, `minor`, or `patch`) according to the following guidelines:
 
-- Major version X (X.y.z | X > 0) should be changed with any backwards-incompatible/"breaking" change. This will usually occur at the final stage of deprecating and removing of a feature.
-- Minor version Y (x.Y.z | x > 0) should be changed when you add functionality or change functionality in a backwards-compatible manner. It must be incremented if any public API functionality is marked as deprecated.
-- Patch version Z (x.y.Z | x > 0) should be incremented when you make backwards-compatible bug fixes.
+- Major version X (X.y.z | X > 0) should be changed with any backward incompatible/"breaking" change. This will usually occur at the final stage of deprecating and removing of a feature.
+- Minor version Y (x.Y.z | x > 0) should be changed when you add functionality or change functionality in a backward compatible manner. It must be incremented if any public API functionality is marked as deprecated.
+- Patch version Z (x.y.Z | x > 0) should be incremented when you make backward compatible bug fixes.
 
 When in doubt, refer to [Semantic Versioning specification](https://semver.org/).
 
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 03251ceba2160e..855958ef9635ef 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@
 This repo is the development hub for the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2017/01/04/focus-tech-and-design-leads/">editor focus in WordPress Core</a>. `Gutenberg` is the project name.
 
 ## Getting started
-- **Download:** If you want to use the latest release with your WordPress site, <a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/gutenberg/">download the latest release from the WordPress.org plugins repository</a>. 
+- **Download:** If you want to use the latest release with your WordPress site, <a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/gutenberg/">download the latest release from the WordPress.org plugins repository</a>.
 - **Discuss:** Conversations and discussions take place in <a href="https://wordpress.slack.com/messages/C02QB2JS7">`#core-editor` channel on the Making WordPress Slack</a>.
 - **Contribute:** Development of Gutenberg happens in this GitHub repo. Get started by <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/blob/master/CONTRIBUTING.md">reading the contributing guidelines</a>.
 - **Learn:** <a href="https://wordpress.org/gutenberg/">Discover more about the project on WordPress.org</a>.
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ Check out the <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/blob/master/docs/r
 
 ## Compatibility
 
-Posts are backwards compatible, and shortcodes will still work. We are continuously exploring how highly-tailored meta boxes can be accommodated, and are looking at solutions ranging from a plugin to disable Gutenberg to automatically detecting whether to load Gutenberg or not. While we want to make sure the new editing experience from writing to publishing is user-friendly, we’re committed to finding a good solution for highly-tailored existing sites.
+Posts are backward compatible, and shortcodes will still work. We are continuously exploring how highly-tailored meta boxes can be accommodated, and are looking at solutions ranging from a plugin to disable Gutenberg to automatically detecting whether to load Gutenberg or not. While we want to make sure the new editing experience from writing to publishing is user-friendly, we’re committed to finding a good solution for highly-tailored existing sites.
 
 ## The stages of Gutenberg
 
diff --git a/docs/designers-developers/developers/README.md b/docs/designers-developers/developers/README.md
index 5c552b2bd835ee..8dbc72195d05cf 100644
--- a/docs/designers-developers/developers/README.md
+++ b/docs/designers-developers/developers/README.md
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ You can also filter certain aspects of the editor; this is documented on the [Ed
 
 **Porting PHP meta boxes to blocks and Gutenberg plugins is highly encouraged!**
 
-Discover how [Meta Box](../../../docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/meta-box.md) support works in Gutenberg.
+Discover how [Meta Box](../../../docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/meta-box.md) support works in Gutenberg.
 
 ## Theme Support
 
diff --git a/docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/README.md b/docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000000..bd559617c5b17f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+# Backward Compatibility
diff --git a/docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/deprecations.md b/docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/deprecations.md
similarity index 97%
rename from docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/deprecations.md
rename to docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/deprecations.md
index 804f55c0a2c19a..7b690e995c5169 100644
--- a/docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/deprecations.md
+++ b/docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/deprecations.md
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 # Deprecations
 
-Gutenberg's deprecation policy is intended to support backwards-compatibility for releases, when possible. The current deprecations are listed below and are grouped by _the version at which they will be removed completely_. If your plugin depends on these behaviors, you must update to the recommended alternative before the noted version.
+Gutenberg's deprecation policy is intended to support backward compatibility for releases, when possible. The current deprecations are listed below and are grouped by _the version at which they will be removed completely_. If your plugin depends on these behaviors, you must update to the recommended alternative before the noted version.
 
 ## 4.5.0
 - `Dropdown.refresh()` has been deprecated as the contained `Popover` is now automatically refreshed.
diff --git a/docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/meta-box.md b/docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/meta-box.md
similarity index 95%
rename from docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/meta-box.md
rename to docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/meta-box.md
index 2f28f48ed77cb2..8e722b4cb31565 100644
--- a/docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/meta-box.md
+++ b/docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/meta-box.md
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ WordPress will fall back to the Classic editor, where the meta box will continue
 
 Explicitly setting `__block_editor_compatible_meta_box` to `true` will cause WordPress to stay in Gutenberg (assuming another meta box doesn't cause a fallback).
 
-After a meta box is converted to a block, it can be declared as existing for backwards compatibility:
+After a meta box is converted to a block, it can be declared as existing for backward compatibility:
 
 ```php
 add_meta_box( 'my-meta-box', 'My Meta Box', 'my_meta_box_callback',
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ add_meta_box( 'my-meta-box', 'My Meta Box', 'my_meta_box_callback',
 );
 ```
 
-When Gutenberg is used, this meta box will no longer be displayed in the meta box area, as it now only exists for backwards compatibility purposes. It will continue to display correctly in the Classic editor, should some other meta box cause a fallback.
+When Gutenberg is used, this meta box will no longer be displayed in the meta box area, as it now only exists for backward compatibility purposes. It will continue to display correctly in the Classic editor, should some other meta box cause a fallback.
 
 ### Meta Box Data Collection
 
@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@ See `lib/register.php gutenberg_trick_plugins_into_registering_meta_boxes()`
 
 `gutenberg_collect_meta_box_data()` is hooked in later on `admin_head`. It will run through the functions and hooks that `post.php` runs to register meta boxes; namely `add_meta_boxes`, `add_meta_boxes_{$post->post_type}`, and `do_meta_boxes`.
 
-A copy of the global `$wp_meta_boxes` is made then filtered through `apply_filters( 'filter_gutenberg_meta_boxes', $_meta_boxes_copy );`, which will strip out any core meta boxes, standard custom taxonomy meta boxes, and any meta boxes that have declared themselves as only existing for backwards compatibility purposes.
+A copy of the global `$wp_meta_boxes` is made then filtered through `apply_filters( 'filter_gutenberg_meta_boxes', $_meta_boxes_copy );`, which will strip out any core meta boxes, standard custom taxonomy meta boxes, and any meta boxes that have declared themselves as only existing for backward compatibility purposes.
 
 Then each location for this particular type of meta box is checked for whether it is active. If it is not empty a value of true is stored, if it is empty a value of false is stored. This meta box location data is then dispatched by the editor Redux store in `INITIALIZE_META_BOX_STATE`.
 
diff --git a/docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/README.md b/docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/README.md
deleted file mode 100644
index bd453cba0e56a4..00000000000000
--- a/docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/README.md
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1 +0,0 @@
-# Backwards Compatibility
diff --git a/docs/manifest.json b/docs/manifest.json
index 2dae91884153aa..e8925eec9fb9ce 100644
--- a/docs/manifest.json
+++ b/docs/manifest.json
@@ -132,22 +132,22 @@
 		"parent": "themes"
 	},
 	{
-		"title": "Backwards Compatibility",
-		"slug": "backwards-compatibility",
-		"markdown_source": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/WordPress/gutenberg/master/docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/README.md",
+		"title": "Backward Compatibility",
+		"slug": "backward-compatibility",
+		"markdown_source": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/WordPress/gutenberg/master/docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/README.md",
 		"parent": "developers"
 	},
 	{
 		"title": "Deprecations",
 		"slug": "deprecations",
-		"markdown_source": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/WordPress/gutenberg/master/docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/deprecations.md",
-		"parent": "backwards-compatibility"
+		"markdown_source": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/WordPress/gutenberg/master/docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/deprecations.md",
+		"parent": "backward-compatibility"
 	},
 	{
 		"title": "Meta Boxes",
 		"slug": "meta-box",
-		"markdown_source": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/WordPress/gutenberg/master/docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/meta-box.md",
-		"parent": "backwards-compatibility"
+		"markdown_source": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/WordPress/gutenberg/master/docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/meta-box.md",
+		"parent": "backward-compatibility"
 	},
 	{
 		"title": "Tutorials",
diff --git a/docs/toc.json b/docs/toc.json
index 211c74631ec700..6dd5e876cbc00c 100644
--- a/docs/toc.json
+++ b/docs/toc.json
@@ -24,9 +24,9 @@
 			{"docs/designers-developers/developers/themes/README.md": [
 				{"docs/designers-developers/developers/themes/theme-support.md": []}
 			]},
-			{"docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/README.md": [
-				{"docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/deprecations.md": []},
-				{"docs/designers-developers/developers/backwards-compatibility/meta-box.md": []}
+			{"docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/README.md": [
+				{"docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/deprecations.md": []},
+				{"docs/designers-developers/developers/backward-compatibility/meta-box.md": []}
 			]},
 			{"docs/designers-developers/developers/tutorials/readme.md": [
 				{"docs/designers-developers/developers/tutorials/block-tutorial/readme.md" :[
diff --git a/lib/client-assets.php b/lib/client-assets.php
index 13672f6516bcdd..c1a6e847bba5e9 100644
--- a/lib/client-assets.php
+++ b/lib/client-assets.php
@@ -391,7 +391,7 @@ function gutenberg_register_scripts_and_styles() {
 	wp_add_inline_script( 'wp-block-library', $script, 'before' );
 
 	// Editor Styles.
-	// This empty stylesheet is defined to ensure backwards compatibility.
+	// This empty stylesheet is defined to ensure backward compatibility.
 	gutenberg_override_style( 'wp-blocks', false );
 	$fonts_url = '';
 
diff --git a/packages/components/src/server-side-render/README.md b/packages/components/src/server-side-render/README.md
index cccde285c645df..ee18a7f4294ed6 100644
--- a/packages/components/src/server-side-render/README.md
+++ b/packages/components/src/server-side-render/README.md
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 
 ServerSideRender is a component used for server-side rendering a preview of dynamic blocks to display in the editor. Server-side rendering in a block's `edit` function should be limited to blocks that are heavily dependent on existing PHP rendering logic that is heavily intertwined with data, particularly when there are no endpoints available.
 
-ServerSideRender may also be used when a legacy block is provided as a backwards compatibility measure, rather than needing to re-write the deprecated code that the block may depend on.
+ServerSideRender may also be used when a legacy block is provided as a backward compatibility measure, rather than needing to re-write the deprecated code that the block may depend on.
 
 ServerSideRender should be regarded as a fallback or legacy mechanism, it is not appropriate for developing new features against.
 
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ const MyServerSideRender = () => (
 		block="core/archives"
 		attributes={ {
 			showPostCounts: true,
-			displayAsDropdown: false, 
+			displayAsDropdown: false,
 		} }
 	/>
 );
diff --git a/packages/edit-post/src/store/effects.js b/packages/edit-post/src/store/effects.js
index 70ebd8cbb53051..a177c36c1b761b 100644
--- a/packages/edit-post/src/store/effects.js
+++ b/packages/edit-post/src/store/effects.js
@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ const effects = {
 
 		const state = store.getState();
 
-		// Additional data needed for backwards compatibility.
+		// Additional data needed for backward compatibility.
 		// If we do not provide this data, the post will be overridden with the default values.
 		const post = select( 'core/editor' ).getCurrentPost( state );
 		const additionalData = [