Definitions for backward
ˈbæk wərdback·ward

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. backwardadjective

   directed or facing toward the back or rear

   "a backward view"

2. backwardadjective

   (used of temperament or behavior) marked by a retiring nature

   "a backward lover"

3. backward, half-witted, slow-witted, feeblemindedadjective

   retarded in intellectual development

4. backwardadverb

   having made less than normal progress

   "an economically backward country"

5. back, backward, backwards, rearward, rearwardsadverb

   at or to or toward the back or rear

   "he moved back"; "tripped when he stepped backward"; "she looked rearward out the window of the car"

6. backward, backwardsadverb

   in a manner or order or direction the reverse of normal

   "it's easy to get the `i' and the `e' backward in words like `seize' and `siege'"; "the child put her jersey on backward"

7. back, backwardadverb

   in or to or toward a past time

   "set the clocks back an hour"; "never look back"; "lovers of the past looking fondly backward"

WiktionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. backwardadverb

   In the direction towards the back; backwards

2. backwardadjective

   Pertaining to the direction towards the back.

3. backwardadjective

   Pertaining to the direction reverse of normal.

   The occasional backward movement of planets is evidence they revolve around the sun.

4. backwardadjective

   Reluctant or unable to advance.

5. backwardadjective

   Of a culture considered undeveloped or unsophisticated.

6. backwardadjective

   Pertaining to a thought or value that is considered outdated.

7. backwardadjective

   On that part of the field behind the batsman's popping crease.

8. backwardadjective

   Further behind the batsman's popping crease than something else.

9. Etymology: From abakward (from on bæc + -weard).

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Backwardadjective

   1. Unwilling; averse.

   Cities laid waste, they storm’d the dens and caves;
   For wiser brutes are backward to be slaves. Alexander Pope.

   We are strangely backward to lay hold of this safe, this only method of cure. Francis Atterbury.

   Our mutability makes the friends of our nation backward to engage with us in alliances. Joseph Addison, Freeholder.

   2. Hesitating.

   All things are ready, if our minds be so;
   Perish the man, whose mind is backward now. William Shakespeare, H. V.

   3. Sluggish; dilatory.

   The mind is backward to undergo the fatigue of weighing every argument. Isaac Watts, Improvement of the Mind.

   4. Dull; not quick or apprehensive.

   It often falls out, that the backward learner makes amends another way. South.

2. Backward, Backwardsadverb

   Etymology: from back and weard, Sax. that is, towards the back.

   1. With the back forwards.

   They went backward, and their faces were backward. Gen. ix.

   2. Towards the back.

   In leaping with weights, the arms are first cast backwards, and then forwards, with so much the greater force; for the hands go backward before they take their rise. Francis Bacon, Nat. H.

   3. On the back.

   Then darting from her malignant eyes,
   She cast him backward as he strove to rise. John Dryden, Æneid.

   4. From the present station to the place behind the back.

   We might have met them dareful, beard to beard,
   And beat them backward home. William Shakespeare, Macbeth.

   The monstrous sight
   Struck them with horrour backward; but far worse
   Urg’d them behind. John Milton, Paradise Lost, b. vi.

   5. Regressively.

   Are not the rays of light, in passing by the edges and sides of bodies, bent several times backwards and forwards with a motion like that of an eel? Isaac Newton, Opticks.

   6. Towards something past.

   To prove the possibility of a thing, there is no argument to that which looks backwards; for what has been done or suffered, may certainly be done or suffered again. South.

   7. Out of the progressive state; reflex.

   No, doubtless; for the mind can backward cast
   Upon herself, her understanding light. John Davies.

   8. From a better to a worse state.

   The work went backward; and the more he strove
   T’ advance the suit, the farther from her love. Dryden.

   9. Past; in time past.

   They have spread one of the worst languages in the world, if we look upon it some reigns backwards. John Locke.

   10. Perversely; from the wrong end.

   I never yet saw man,
   But she would spell him backward; if fair-fac’d,
   She’d swear the gentleman should be her sister;
   If black, why, nature, drawing of an antick,
   Made a foul blot; if tall, a launce ill-headed. William Shakespeare, Much ado about Nothing.

3. Backwardnoun

   The things or state behind or past.

   What seest thou else
   In the dark backward or abysm of time? William Shakespeare, Tempest.

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. backward

   Backward or Backwards is a relative direction.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. backward

   Backward refers to the direction or action that is opposite to the usual or desired way, or the one that goes behind rather than moving forward or making progress. It typically signifies a return to an earlier or less advanced condition or stage. It can also imply acting in a manner that's considered less developed or regressive compared to the norm. The term can be applied in multiple contexts such as time, space, or methodology.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Backwardadverb

   alt. of Backwards

2. Backwardadjective

   directed to the back or rear; as, backward glances

3. Backwardadjective

   unwilling; averse; reluctant; hesitating; loath

4. Backwardadjective

   not well advanced in learning; not quick of apprehension; dull; inapt; as, a backward child

5. Backwardadjective

   late or behindhand; as, a backward season

6. Backwardadjective

   not advanced in civilization; undeveloped; as, the country or region is in a backward state

7. Backwardadjective

   already past or gone; bygone

8. Backwardnoun

   the state behind or past

9. Backwardverb

   to keep back; to hinder

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Backward

   bak′ward, adv. towards the back: on the back: towards the past: from a better to a worse state: in a direction opposite to the normal—also Back′wards.—adj. Back′ward, keeping back: unwilling: slow: late: dull or stupid.—n. the past portion of time.—n. Back′wardation, percentage paid by a seller of stock for keeping back its delivery till the following account.—adv. Back′wardly.—n. Back′wardness.—Backward and forward, to and fro.—To ring bells backward, to ring them, beginning with the bass bell, in order to give tidings of dismay. [Back, and affix Ward, Wards, in the direction of.]

Anagrams for backward »

1. drawback

2. draw back

How to pronounce backward?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say backward in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of backward in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of backward in Pythagorean Numerology is: 9

Examples of backward in a Sentence

1. Jim Reid:

   U.S./China trade newsflow seemed to take a backward step ahead of important talks this week and UK/EU Brexit talks not only unraveled but the relationship between the two sides seems to be in danger of breaking down completely, so the obvious cracks that have been appearing over more than four decades of globalization are in danger of widening significantly in the days and weeks ahead.

2. Google Translate:

   In the smoke haze, the most abundant particles are around onemicrometre in size, but these particles do not change the colour of the light we see, there are also smaller particles, around 0.05 micrometres or less, that dont make up a lot of the haze but are still somewhat more abundant during a haze period [than a normal non-haze period]... but this is enough to give an extra tendency to scatter red light more in the forward and backward directions than blue light - and that is why would you see more red than blue.

3. Jefferson County:

   Our goal then and now has been to bring justice to Jeannie and her family, and while we would have preferred to place handcuffs on the suspect, we hope knowing who and where he is brings them some degree of closure. MISSOURI MAN INDICTED IN COLD CASE MURDER HE WAS QUIZZED ABOUT 31 YEARS AGO The sheriffs office said Donald Perea kidnapped, sexually assaulted and killed Moore near Denver when he was 23 years old. Donald Perea, Donald Perea, died on May 28, 2012, at the age of 54 due to health-related issues. Donald Perea kidnapped, sexually assaulted and killed Jeannie Moore near Denver in August 1981, according to officials. ( Jefferson County Sheriff's Office) Investigators said Donald Perea was out on bond for a separate sexual assault case when Jeannie Moores was killed ; Donald Perea was later convicted and was in prison from 1982 to 1985. Jeannie Moores left Jeannie Moores home for work at a gas station on Aug. 25, 1981 -- hitchhiking as Jeannie Moores typically would -- when Jeannie Moores was last seen getting into an older Ford Galaxy or LTD that was red, according to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Five days later, Jeannie Moores body was found by picnickers in Genesee Park, south of Interstate 70. An autopsy found that Jeannie Moores was killed by several blows to the head, FOX31 reported. After Jeannie Moores murder went unsolved for decades, officials said the cold case was looked at in 2008 and again in May 2019, when new technology found a match. A public-private partnership that allowed forensic genealogy testing to be completed by United Data Connect Connect helped uncover a match. The information that led to Donald Perea was the same technology that helped crack the Golden State killer and other notable cold-case murders and rapes in 2018. How authorities linked Steven Perea to the case. ( Jefferson County Sheriff's Office) The DNA evidence from the crime scene was linked to a family member of Donald Perea this spring, and investigators were able to interview family members and get other samples to confirm that he was the suspect linked to the case. OREGON MAN ARRESTED IN 1978 COLD-CASE MURDER OF ALASKA TEEN, AUTHORITIES SAY Joan Busse, a genealogist with United Data Connect, told FOX31 Joan Busse put in 40 to 60 hours working backward through thousands of ancestors on public genealogy websites and DNA matches to identify a suspect. DNA can be uploaded to public genealogy websites such as GEDmatch.com through commercial kits where people can choose to opt-inif they want law enforcement to be able to access that information.

4. Taysom Hill:

   Yes. God could have prevented this. But he did n’t, and that’s all right, listen, trials and difficult times can help you become better and move forward, or they can cause you to step backward. It’s how you handle those situations that shows who you can become. I view this as an opportunity to share my faith with others.

5. Anne Rice, "Blood and Gold":

   No matter how long we exist, we have our memories. Points in time which time itself cannot erase. Suffering may distort my backward glances, but even to suffering, some memories will yield nothing of ther beauty or their splendor. Rather they remain as hard as gems.

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References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=backward
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Backward
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=backward
4. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backward
5. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
6. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/backward
7. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=backward