backwards
Britishadverb
-
towards the rear
-
with the back foremost
-
in the reverse of usual order or direction
-
to or towards the past
-
into a worse state
the patient was slipping backwards
-
towards the point of origin
-
informal to make a special effort, esp in order to please
-
informal to understand completely
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.
She urged the Commonwealth to "look forward" and "not endlessly backwards".
From Barron's ● Oct. 31, 2026
Doncic answered with a no-look, backwards bounce pass.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
It is "not going backwards, in other words", she said.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
It was their biggest car update since the Canadian Grand Prix in May but team boss Toto Wolff said at Sepang that it had appeared to take them backwards rather than forwards.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
What I saw all but caused me to fall over backwards.
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
