backward

[bak-werd]

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adverb Also back·wards.

toward the back or rear.

with the back foremost.

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

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

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

adjective

directed toward the back or past.

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

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

bashful or hesitant; shy: a backward lover.

Idioms

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

Origin of backward

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

Related formsback·ward·ly, adverbback·ward·ness, nounun·back·ward, adjective

Synonyms for backward

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8. tardy; retarded, underdeveloped. 9. disinclined; timid, retiring.

Antonyms for backward

1. forward.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for backward and forward

seesaw, zigzag

British Dictionary definitions for backward and forward

backward

adjective

(usually prenominal) directed towards the reara backward glance

retarded in physical, material, or intellectual developmentbackward countries; a backward child

of or relating to the past; conservative or reactionary
(in combination)backward-looking

reluctant or bashfula backward lover

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

adverb

a variant of backwards

Derived Formsbackwardly, adverbbackwardness, 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

Word Origin and History for backward and forward

backward

adv.

c.1300, from abakward, from Old English on bæc (see back (adv.)) + -weard adjectival and adverbial suffix (see -ward). Old English had the adverb bæcling. As an adjective, from 1550s. Meaning "behindhand with regard to progress" is first attested 1690s. To ring bells backward (from lowest to highest), c.1500, was a signal of alarm for fire or invasion, or to express dismay. Another Middle English word for "backward, wrongly" was arseward (c.1400).

Idioms and Phrases with backward and forward

backward and forward

Also, backwards and forwards.

Same as back and forth.

Thoroughly, completely, as in He read the speech over and over, until he knew it backwards and forwards. [Late 1500s]

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)