backwards
Britishadverb
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towards the rear
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with the back foremost
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in the reverse of usual order or direction
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to or towards the past
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into a worse state
the patient was slipping backwards
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towards the point of origin
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informal to make a special effort, esp in order to please
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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.
“I saw part of that, and what really freaked me out was when she was crawling up upside down and backwards down the stairs — kind of like the spider.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 18, 2026
"It can hover like a helicopter, fly forwards like an aircraft, but equally brake in midair or fly backwards," marketing chief Andrea Marchsteiner told AFP.
From Barron's • Jun. 18, 2026
You don’t arrive at a chapter and then find yourself needing to frantically page backwards to try to find the previous reference to a person or event, because it will already be present.
From Salon • Jun. 9, 2026
“Given all the other index providers bending over backwards to change their methodologies, it’s good to see S&P DJI not make any changes,” he wrote.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 5, 2026
The little dragon dodged backwards, scampering over jagged branches in an attempt to escape.
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
Definitions 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.
