froward
adjective
willfully contrary; not easily managed.
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froward
1 American
[froh-werd, froh-erd]
/ ˈfroʊ wərd, ˈfroʊ ərd /
adjective
Froward
2
American
[froh-werd, froh-erd]
/ ˈfroʊ wərd, ˈfroʊ ərd /
noun
froward
British
/ ˈfrəʊəd /
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of froward
First recorded in 1150–1200, froward is from the Middle English word froward, fraward. See fro, -ward
Explanation
Froward means willful and disobedient. If your dog sits when you call her to come and runs away when you tell her to sit, you can say she's froward. The adverb froward is an old-fashioned way to describe someone who's difficult and ornery. It's a lot more fun to babysit agreeable kids than froward ones. New teachers have nightmares about classes full of froward students and are relieved to find pleasant and polite ones on the first day of school. The Old English root of froward is frāward, "turning away from," or the opposite of toward.
Vocabulary lists containing froward
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.
See Examples For:
Two of them — 6-2 froward Autumn Newby from Baylor and 5-6 guard Alexis Morris from Texas A&M — are starters.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 25, 2022
“Before we were stepping froward, now we’re stepping back,” a supporter named Katherine King told me.
From The New Yorker ● Nov. 9, 2016
The biography of Moreton Frewen, Winston Churchill's froward uncle and a born loser who went from one financial debacle to another with style, imagination and diligence.
From Time Magazine Archive
"What a froward, drivelling flibbergib have I taken to my bosom!"
From Time Magazine Archive
The former, however, retains sufficient of his hereditary propensities to give an occasional sly blow to a froward chicken, but that very seldom of a serious or malicious character.
From Sheep, Swine, and Poultry Embracing the History and Varieties of Each; The Best Modes of Breeding; Their Feeding and Management; Together with etc. by Jennings, Robert
Tierra del Fuego is divided by several channels; a principal one of which is opposite to Cape Froward, and another fronts Port Gallant.
From Narrative of the surveying voyages of His Majesty's ships Adventure and Beagle, between the years 1826 and 1836 Volume I. - Proceedings of the First Expedition, 1826-1830 by Fitzroy, Robert
Often forgetful, Love may forget; Froward and fretful, Dear, he will fret; Ever regretful, He will regret.
From One Day & Another A Lyrical Eclogue by Cawein, Julius Madison
From this point, several ineffectual attempts were made to advance; but we were driven back as soon as we cleared Cape Froward, and obliged to retreat to our anchorage.
From The Captive in Patagonia by Bourne, Benjamin Franklin
Soon after passing Port Famine we saw the bold outline of Cape Froward, the southernmost point of South America, stretching into the Straits.
From A Voyage in the 'Sunbeam' Our Home on the Ocean for Eleven Months by Brassey, Annie
On rounding Cape Froward, we beat up in-shore against a N.N.E. breeze, and in the evening were three or four miles to the northward of Point St. Isidro.
From Narrative of the surveying voyages of His Majesty's ships Adventure and Beagle, between the years 1826 and 1836 Volume I. - Proceedings of the First Expedition, 1826-1830 by Fitzroy, Robert
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.
