fast forward

¹

[fast fawr-werd, fahst-]

noun

1. a function of an audio or video recorder or player, as a cassette deck or DVR, that allows the content to be advanced rapidly.

2. the button or other control that activates this function.

fast-forward

²

[fast-fawr-werd, fahst-]

verb (used with or without object)

1. to advance an audio or video recording rapidly.

   I always fast-forward through the TV ads that get recorded on my DVR.

2. to skip over a period of time and arrive at a future point in the timeline, especially in narration.

   Fast-forward six months, she’s gotten engaged and is moving to Europe!

fast-forward

noun

1. (sometimes not hyphenated) the control on a tape deck or video recorder used to wind the tape or video forward at speed

2. informal,  a state of urgency or rapid progress

   my mind went into fast forward

verb

1. (tr) to wind (a video or tape) forward using the fast-forward control

2. to deal with speedily

   fast-forward the trials of the new drug

3. (intr) to move forward through a tape or video using the fast-forward control

4. (usually foll by to) to direct one's attention towards a particular time or event, ignoring intervening material

   fast-forward to the summer of 2008

Word History and Origins

Origin of fast forward¹

First recorded in 1945–50

Word History and Origins

Origin of fast forward¹

C20: from the fast-forward wind control in a tape deck

Example Sentences

Fast forward a few months, and this time three of the four changes Postecoglou made to his side were at the back - as he handed captain Ryan Yates and fellow defenders Nicolo Savona and Jair Cunha their first league starts of the season.

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Fast forward to July, when Meta revealed a set of new and largely symbolic teen safety features.

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Fast forward to Tuesday, when Federal Communications Chairman Brendan Carr claimed on a right-wing podcast that Kimmel had said “the sickest thing possible” about Charlie Kirk’s assassination on his show.

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Fast forward to now, and the 60-year-old was relaxed in the City Ground press room, joking about how his birthday celebrations at the weekend were interrupted by negotiations with Forest and how the school run was the best motivator to return to work.

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Fast forward to the 2024 sequel, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” and we find a similar dynamic, but with a twist.

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