behind
Americanpreposition
-
at or toward the rear of.
Look behind the house.
-
not keeping up with, later than; after.
behind schedule.
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in the state of making less progress than.
We can't afford to fall behind our competitors.
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on the farther side of; beyond.
behind the mountain.
-
originating, supporting, or promoting.
Who's behind this program?
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hidden or unrevealed by.
Malice lay behind her smile.
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at the controls of.
behind the wheel of a car.
adverb
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at or toward the rear; rearward.
to lag behind.
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in a place, state, or stage already passed.
-
in arrears; behindhand.
to be behind in one's rent.
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slow, as a watch or clock.
more than 20 minutes behind.
-
as a cause or often latent feature of.
Behind their harassment lay the traditional fear of foreigners.
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in a situation that exists afterward.
The victim left behind a large family.
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Archaic. in reserve; to come.
Greater support is yet behind.
adjective
noun
preposition
-
in or to a position further back than; at the rear of; at the back of
-
in the past in relation to
I've got the exams behind me now
-
late according to; not keeping up with
running behind schedule
-
concerning the circumstances surrounding
the reasons behind his departure
-
backing or supporting
I'm right behind you in your application
adverb
-
in or to a position further back; following
-
remaining after someone's departure
he left it behind
-
in debt; in arrears
to fall behind with payments
adjective
noun
-
informal the buttocks
-
Australian rules football a score of one point made by kicking the ball over the behind line between a goalpost and one of the smaller outer posts ( behind posts )
Usage
See back 1.
Synonym Usage
Behind, after both refer to a position following something else. Behind applies primarily to position in space, and suggests that one person or thing is at the back of another; it may also refer to (a fixed) time: He stood behind the chair. You are behind the appointed time. After applies primarily to time; when it denotes position in space, it is not used with precision, and refers usually to bodies in motion: Rest after a hard day's work. They entered the room, one after another.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of behind
First recorded before 900; Middle English behinde(n), Old English behindan; equivalent to be- + hind 1; for adverb suffix -an, cf. before
Explanation
When one thing is behind another, it's at the rear or the far side of it, possibly even hidden by it. Your shy dog might tend to stand behind you when you meet a friend on your walk. When the sun hides behind a cloud, the cloud is in front of it, and when there's fear lurking behind your cheerful smile, the grin is disguising, or covering, your anxiety. Behind can also mean "supporting," as when you're a hundred percent behind your sister's campaign for school president; or "lagging," as when you say: "Slow down! I'm way behind in this race!" Finally, behind is a gentle slang term for "buttocks."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Appeared in the June 29, 2026, print edition as 'Lincoln Pool Company Stands Behind Its Work'.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 28, 2026
Behind him as he spoke, the opening words of Socolow and Pacala’s paper — the same ones Mottershead had suggested moving to the top — appeared on a screen.
From Salon • Jun. 26, 2026
Behind the scenes, he urged banks to lend to securities firms.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 22, 2026
Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, schools faced mounting pressure to raise test scores, creating a fundamental tension between learning time and and play time.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 18, 2026
Behind the classic building facades of brick and stone was some of the most intricate technology known to man, all developed to help facilitate the continuation of the Glitch Initiative.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
