rear

¹ American  

[reer] / rɪər /

noun

• rears
  plural

1. the back of something, as distinguished from the front.

   The porch is at the rear of the house.

2. the space or position behind something.

   The bus driver asked the passengers to move to the rear.

3. the buttocks; rump.

4. the hindmost portion of an army, fleet, etc.

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adjective

1. pertaining to or situated at the rear of something.

   the rear door of a bus.

idioms

1. bring up the rear, to be at the end; follow behind.

   The army retreated, and the fleeing civilian population brought up the rear.

rear ² American  

[reer] / rɪər /

verb (used with object)

• rears,
  present (3rd person singular)
• reared,
  past participle,  past
• rearing
  present participle

1. to take care of and support up to maturity.

   to rear a child.

   Synonyms:

   raise, nurture

2. to breed and raise (livestock).

3. to raise by building; erect.

   Synonyms:

   construct

4. to raise to an upright position.

   to rear a ladder.

5. to lift or hold up; elevate; raise.

   Synonyms:

   lift, hoist

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verb (used without object)

• rears,
  present (3rd person singular)
• reared,
  past participle,  past
• rearing
  present participle

1. to rise on the hind legs, as a horse or other animal.

2. (of a person) to start up in angry excitement, hot resentment, or the like (usually followed byup ).

3. to rise high or tower aloft.

   The skyscraper rears high over the neighboring buildings.

idioms

1. rear its (ugly) head. head.

rear ¹ British  

/ rɪə /

noun

1. the back or hind part

2. the area or position that lies at the back

   a garden at the rear of the house

3. the section of a military force or procession farthest from the front

4. the buttocks See buttock

5. to be at the back in a procession, race, etc

6. at the back

7. (modifier) of or in the rear

   the rear legs

   the rear side

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rear ² British  

/ rɪə /

verb

1. (tr) to care for and educate (children) until maturity; bring up; raise

2. (tr) to breed (animals) or grow (plants)

3. (tr) to place or lift (a ladder, etc) upright

4. (tr) to erect (a monument, building, etc); put up

5. (esp of horses) to lift the front legs in the air and stand nearly upright

6. (intr; often foll by up or over) (esp of tall buildings) to rise high; tower

7. (intr) to start with anger, resentment, etc

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rear More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing rear

• bring up the rear

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Commonly Confused

See raise.

Synonym Usage

See back ¹.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• rearer
  noun
• unreared
  adjective
• well-reared
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• rears
  plural

Participles

• rearing
  present
• reared
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• rear
  simple
• rears
  simple
• have reared
  perfect
• has reared
  perfect
• am rearing
  progressive
• are rearing
  progressive
• is rearing
  progressive
• have been rearing
  perfect progressive
• has been rearing
  perfect progressive

Past

• reared
  simple
• had reared
  perfect
• was rearing
  progressive
• were rearing
  progressive
• had been rearing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will rear
  simple
• will have reared
  perfect
• will be rearing
  progressive
• will have been rearing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of rear¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; shortened variant of arrear

Origin of rear²

First recorded before 900; Middle English reren, ræren, reare, Old English rǣran “to raise ”; cognate with Gothic -raisjan, Old Norse reisa

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Explanation

The rear is the back end of something, like the rear of a school bus or the members of the marching band who stand at the rear of the parade. At the other end of something's front is its rear, whether it's a car or a line of people standing outside a theater. You can also use rear informally to mean "bottom" or "hindquarters," as an adjective meaning "toward the back," or as a verb: "The horses started to rear up on their back legs." The verb comes from a Germanic root meaning "to raise," while the noun is rooted in the Latin retro, "behind."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

rear rears reared rearing

The fossil consists of part of the rear of the dinosaur's skull.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026

In other dramatic scenes, protesters were seen holding on to one another as they were dragged to waiting buses -- only for them to later wriggle out from the driver's seat or the rear window.

From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026

With a cavitating roar, the CrossWave stood up on its tail, throwing Roz backward, her arms wrapped around my neck in a rear naked chokehold.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

Mercedes have introduced their first major upgrade since the Canadian Grand Prix, with a new floor and rear bodywork.

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026

I close the truck door and focus my eyes into the shadows that stretch toward the rear of Dad’s yard, trying to reassure myself that no one’s watching.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

Like most sheep farmers, Williams primarily rears them for meat and breeding rather than for their wool, but it still has to be taken care of.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

The Salt Lake City Mosquito Abatement District even has its own fish hatchery, where it rears the aptly named Western mosquitofish.

From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026

But for the most part, Ferraiolo says, young people have a fear of missing out—a phenomenon that rears its head every time an investment soars, as seen in recent years with cryptocurrency and meme stocks.

From Barron's ● Feb. 24, 2026

Gold often reasserts its role as a safe harbor when uncertainty rears its head, drawing investors toward its stability as other assets wobble.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 13, 2026

The Grootslang rears back, but the crew finally gets the ship’s cannons to turn on.

From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer

When her anxiety reared up, Biles was ready.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026

Insect larvae reared at higher temperatures will develop faster and reach pupation at a smaller size.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026

The Medicare issue has also reared its head in recent times.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026

He even managed to send two of his four children to university with the help of government grants by selling livestock he reared by himself.

From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026

I reared back and said, “Twenty-eight little ones and Jimbo.”

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls

In the warm, dry spring a glut of glorious foundresses – new queens – emerged from hibernation to start their nests alone, carrying out all the nest building, egg laying, foraging and brood rearing.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026

John does all that too, on top of his parents blasting all fear out of him while rearing him to expect the universe to be unforgiving.

From Salon ● Aug. 31, 2026

A male Montagu's harrier, known as "AU" by conservationists, bred with two different females, rearing six chicks across two nests on English farmland.

From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026

Christopher Nolan’s version of the Trojan Horse—35 feet tall and rearing on hind legs—was half buried in sand on the Atlantic coast.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026

But it kept rearing its ugly head, coming out in different ways.

From "How Dare the Sun Rise" by Sandra Uwiringiyimana

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Related Words

• back
• back door
• back end
• backside
• bottom
• butt
• rear end
• tail

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