forward

American  

[fawr-werd] / ˈfɔr wərd /

adverb

1. toward or at a place, point, or time in advance; onward; ahead.

   to move forward;

   from this day forward;

   to look forward.

2. toward the front.

   Let's move forward so we can hear better.

3. into view or consideration; out; forth.

   He brought forward several good suggestions.

4. toward the bow or front of a vessel or aircraft.

5. ahead.

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adjective

1. directed toward a point in advance; moving ahead; onward.

   The chest-high snow made forward motion almost impossible.

   Antonyms:

   backward

2. being in a condition of advancement; well-advanced.

   It was quite forward in the season when we finished our planting.

3. presumptuous, impertinent, or bold.

   That girl is a rude, forward child.

   Synonyms:

   impudent, assuming

4. situated in the front or forepart.

   The bow is the forward part of the ship.

5. of or relating to the future; for the future or forward delivery.

   In August the hog packer was offering a forward price of $1.81/kg for hogs delivered in September.

   Synonyms:

   premature, future, preliminary, early

6. lying ahead or to the front.

   Take the forward path.

7. radical or extreme, as persons or opinions.

   The group represents a forward trend in liberal thought.

   Synonyms:

   progressive, unconventional

8. standing out from others (sometimes used in combination).

   These fashion-forward celebrities set the trends for the rest of us.

   Sage is an herb with a strong, forward flavor.

9. ready, prompt, or eager.

   Synonyms:

   zealous, earnest, willing

noun

• forwards
  plural

1. Sports.

   1. a player stationed in advance of others on a team.

   2. Football. a lineman.

   3. Basketball. either of two players stationed in the forecourt.

2. Finance. something bought, as a security, for future delivery.

verb (used with object)

• forwards,
  present (3rd person singular)
• forwarded,
  past participle,  past
• forwarding
  present participle

1. to send forward; transmit, especially to a new address.

   He asked me to forward his mail while he’s in Japan.

2. to advance or help onward; promote.

   The training will help to forward your career.

   Synonyms:

   foster, further

verb (used without object)

• forwards,
  present (3rd person singular)
• forwarded,
  past participle,  past
• forwarding
  present participle

1. to advance or play a cassette, digital recording, slide projector, etc., in the forward direction.

   Forward through the first few ballads to get to the dance tracks on this album.

verb phrase

1. put forward. put.

idioms

1. pay it forward. pay.

2. put one's best foot forward. foot.

forward British  

/ ˈfɔːwəd /

adjective

1. directed or moving ahead

2. lying or situated in or near the front part of something

3. presumptuous, pert, or impudent

   a forward remark

4. well developed or advanced, esp in physical, material, or intellectual growth or development

   forward ideas

5. archaic (often postpositive) ready, eager, or willing

6. 1. of or relating to the future or favouring change; progressive

   2. ( in combination )

      forward-looking

7. finance realting to fulfilment at a future date

8. (of an animal) in good condition

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noun

1. 1. an email that has been sent to one recipient and then forwarded to another

   2. (in American football) a lineman

2. an attacking player in any of various sports, such as soccer, hockey, or basketball

adverb

1. a variant of forwards

2. towards the front or bow of an aircraft or ship

3. into prominence or a position of being subject to public scrutiny; out; forth

   the witness came forward

verb

1. to send forward or pass on to an ultimate destination

   the letter was forwarded from a previous address

2. to advance, help, or promote

   to forward one's career

3. bookbinding to prepare (a book) for the finisher

forward More Idioms  

1. see backward and forward; carry forward; come forward; from this day forward; know like a book (backwards and forwards); look forward; put forward; put one's best foot forward; set forward.

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Synonym Usage

Forward, onward both indicate a direction toward the front or a movement in a frontward direction. Forward applies to any movement toward what is or is conceived to be the front or a goal: to face forward; to move forward in the aisles. Onward applies to any movement in continuance of a course: to march onward toward a goal. See bold.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• overforwardness
  noun
• reforward
  verb (used with object)
• forwardable
  adjective
• overforward
  adjective
• forwardly
  adverb
• overforwardly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• forwards
  plural

Participles

• forwarding
  present
• forwarded
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• forward
  simple
• forwards
  simple
• have forwarded
  perfect
• has forwarded
  perfect
• am forwarding
  progressive
• are forwarding
  progressive
• is forwarding
  progressive
• have been forwarding
  perfect progressive
• has been forwarding
  perfect progressive

Past

• forwarded
  simple
• had forwarded
  perfect
• was forwarding
  progressive
• were forwarding
  progressive
• had been forwarding
  perfect progressive

Future

• will forward
  simple
• will have forwarded
  perfect
• will be forwarding
  progressive
• will have been forwarding
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of forward

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English for(e)weard; see fore ¹, -ward

Explanation

Forward is the direction ahead of you, or toward the front of something. It can also be a position on a basketball, soccer, or hockey team. Forward can be a direction of either space or time, and also implies progress. A forward-thinking person thinks about what will happen in the future. If you forward an email, you send it on to a new recipient. But if you forward a cause, that means you helped propel it to success. If you’re at a bar and someone tells you you’re being awfully forward, you’re probably coming on too strong.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

forward forwards forwarded forwarding

The new stepping stone qualification would offer an alternative route for students like Tobias to keep moving forward.

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026

The central bank also released a constant stream of forward guidance hinting at low rates in the future to deter markets from bidding up yields.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

The forward exploited a gap in the visiting defense and fired a shot across the goal from the left that sailed just over the top left corner.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026

The table shows forward price/sales ratios because the consensus among analysts is that the neocloud companies will show net losses for the next 12 reported months combined.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026

Happy memories of the dad he used to be flash behind my eyes like a photo album on fast forward.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

Tottenham are in talks with Manchester City over a double deal for forwards Savinho and Omar Marmoush.

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026

Also, there are plenty of other cheap forwards to choose from before resorting to Isidor.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

McBurnie comes in £0.5m cheaper than some popular forwards like Calvert-Lewin and Brobbey.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

Though Liverpool struggled collectively, Gakpo actually remained one of Europe's most dangerous wide forwards in terms of finding scoring opportunities.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

But if he moved at all, it might fall the wrong way – forwards, nearer to him.

From "I'm the King of the Castle" by Susan Hill

This “where and when am I” information gets forwarded to the lateral septum.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 12, 2026

She forwarded $3,000 of it to the scammers before PayPal’s fraud protections cut her off.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026

That’s the view put forwarded by Deutsche Bank strategist Michael Hseuh, who reiterated the bank’s year-end call for gold to reach $4,600.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 3, 2026

She also forwarded her ruling to disciplinary officials in New York, who had earlier received an ethics complaint about acting Attorney General Todd Blanche.

From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2026

I am sorry for the delay in responding to your letter, which had been forwarded from my London hotel and which I only received this morning, upon my return to dear old Swanburne.

From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood

It also sees potential cost efficiencies, especially within freight forwarding.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026

They found evidence that ChatGPT appeared to be “using forwarding looking information despite being asked not to.”

From MarketWatch ● May 8, 2026

RXO is a large third-party logistics firm, or 3PL, brokering truck transportation, freight forwarding, and last-mile delivery for customers in an asset-light business model.

From Barron's ● May 7, 2026

But Postal Service forwarding ends after a year.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 17, 2026

No one thought it was worth forwarding to the FBI in Washington.

From Nazi Saboteurs by Samantha Seiple

Related Words

• address
• deliver
• dispatch
• express
• transmit