backward and forward

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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]

QUIZZES

Did you ever collect all those state quarters? Put them to good use on this quiz about curious state monikers and the facts around them.

Question 1 of 8

Mississippi’s nickname comes from the magnificent trees that grow there. What is it?

As an example of good science-and-society policymaking, the history of fluoride may be more of a cautionary tale.
Anti-Fluoriders Are The OG Anti-Vaxxers|Michael Schulson|July 27, 2016|DAILY BEAST
As this list shows, punishments typically run to a short-ish jail sentence and/or a moderately hefty fine.
In Defense of Blasphemy|Michael Tomasky|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
What if you just want eyes on the back of your head, you want forward and rear-facing cameras?
All Your Internet Boyfriends Are Taken: Gosling, Cumberbatch, and now Joseph Gordon-Levitt|Melissa Leon|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
So just looking forward to taking our sweet ass time with this next one.
Deer Tick's John McCauley on Ten Years in Rock and Roll|James Joiner|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST

His speeches, which he wrote himself, were frequently brilliant, even if they too often pointed backward instead of forward.
President Cuomo Would’ve Been a Lion|Jonathan Alter|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST
He reached forward and took her hands, and if Mrs. Vivian had come in she would have seen him kneeling at her daughter's feet.
Confidence|Henry James
Sol got up, slowly; took a backward step into the yard; filled his lungs, opened his mouth, made his eyes round.
The Bondboy|George W. (George Washington) Ogden
They came forward, a little timidly, and their latest visitor held out a hand to each.
The Boarded-Up House|Augusta Huiell Seaman
A distinguished-looking man, evidently vested with authority, bustled forward and addressed him, civilly enough.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
Ollie saw someone standing before it, bending slightly forward in the pose of expectation.
The Bondboy|George W. (George Washington) Ogden