backward

[ bak-werd ]
See synonyms for: backwardbackwardness on Thesaurus.com

adverbAlso backwards.
  1. toward the back or rear.

  2. with the back foremost.

  1. in the reverse of the usual or right way: counting backward from 100.

  2. toward the past: to look backward over one's earlier mistakes.

  3. toward a less advanced state; retrogressively: Since the overthrow of the president the country has moved steadily backward.

adjective
  1. directed toward the back or past.

  2. reversed; returning: a backward movement;a backward journey.

  1. behind in time or progress; late; slow: a backward learner;a backward country.

  2. bashful or hesitant; shy: a backward lover.

Idioms about backward

  1. backward and forward, thoroughly: He knew his lesson backward and forward.: Also backwards and forwards.

Origin of backward

1
First recorded in 1250–1300, backward is from the Middle English word bakwarde.See back1, -ward

Other words for backward

Opposites for backward

Other words from backward

  • back·ward·ly, adverb
  • back·ward·ness, noun
  • un·back·ward, adjective

Words Nearby backward

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use backward in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for backward

backward

/ (ˈbækwəd) /


adjective
  1. (usually prenominal) directed towards the rear: a backward glance

  2. retarded in physical, material, or intellectual development: backward countries; a backward child

    • of or relating to the past; conservative or reactionary

    • (in combination): backward-looking

  1. reluctant or bashful: a backward lover

  2. chess (of a pawn) behind neighbouring pawns and unable to be supported by them

adverb
  1. a variant of backwards

Derived forms of backward

  • backwardly, adverb
  • backwardness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with backward

backward

In addition to the idiom beginning with backward

  • backward and forward

also see:

  • bend over backward
  • fall over (backwards)
  • know like a book (backwards and forwards)

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.