Backwards — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

at or to or toward the back or rear

in a manner or order or direction the reverse of normal

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/kˈæneɪlɚ/

🇬🇧British English

/ˈantɪkwˌeɪtɪd/

🇮🇳Indian English

/ˈantɪkwˌeɪtɪd/

2 syllables Say it as /kˈæneɪlɚ/.

Examples

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

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

rearward backward back rearwards

Antonyms

forward

Parts of Speech

adverb	at or to or toward the back or rear “he moved back”
adverb	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'”

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

rückwärts

an oder nach oder nach hinten oder hinten

🇫🇷French

en arrière

à ou vers ou vers l'arrière ou vers l'arrière

🇪🇸Spanish

hacia atrás

en o hacia o hacia atrás o detrás

🇮🇹Italian

indietro

in o verso o verso la parte posteriore o posteriore

🇳🇱Dutch

achteruit

op of aan of richting de achterkant of achterkant

🇵🇹Portuguese

para trás

em ou para ou em direção à parte traseira ou traseira

🇷🇺Russian

назад

в или к или к спине или назад

India

🇮🇳Hindi

पीछे की ओर

पर या की ओर या पीछे या पीछे की ओर

🇧🇩Bengali

পিছনে

পিছনে বা পিছনে বা দিকে বা দিকে

🇮🇳Tamil

பின்னோக்கி

பின்புறம் அல்லது பின்புறம் அல்லது நோக்கி

🇮🇳Telugu

వెనుకకు

వెనుక లేదా వెనుక వైపు లేదా వైపు

🇮🇳Marathi

मागे

मागे किंवा मागे किंवा कडे किंवा दिशेने

🇮🇳Gujarati

પાછળની તરફ

પાછળ અથવા પાછળની બાજુએ અથવા તરફ અથવા તરફ

🇮🇳Kannada

ಹಿಂದಕ್ಕೆ

ಹಿಂದೆ ಅಥವಾ ಹಿಂಭಾಗದಲ್ಲಿ ಅಥವಾ ಕಡೆಗೆ

🇮🇳Malayalam

പിന്നിലേക്ക്

പിന്നിലേക്കോ പിന്നിലേക്കോ അങ്ങോട്ടോ

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਪਿੱਛੇ ਵੱਲ

'ਤੇ ਜਾਂ ਵੱਲ ਜਾਂ ਪਿੱਛੇ ਜਾਂ ਪਿੱਛੇ ਵੱਲ

🇵🇰Urdu

پیچھے کی طرف

پیچھے یا پیچھے کی طرف یا اس کی طرف

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

向后

在或到或朝向后面或后方

🇯🇵Japanese

後ろ向きに

後ろまたは後ろに、または後ろに向かって

🇰🇷Korean

뒤로

뒤쪽이나 뒤쪽으로 또는 뒤쪽으로

🇻🇳Vietnamese

ngược lại

tại hoặc tới hoặc về phía sau hoặc phía sau

🇹🇭Thai

ถอยหลัง

ที่หรือถึงหรือไปทางด้านหลังหรือด้านหลัง

🇮🇩Indonesian

ke belakang

di atau ke atau ke arah belakang atau belakang

🇵🇭Filipino

paurong

sa o sa o patungo sa likod o likuran

🇲🇾Malay

ke belakang

di atau ke atau ke arah belakang atau belakang

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

إلى الوراء

في أو إلى أو نحو الخلف أو الخلف

🇮🇷Persian

به عقب

در یا به یا به سمت عقب یا عقب

🇹🇷Turkish

geriye doğru

arkaya veya arkaya doğru veya ona doğru

🇮🇱Hebrew

אֲחוֹרָה

בחלק האחורי או האחורי או אל או לכיוון האחורי

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'backwards'?

The primary meaning of 'backwards' is 'at or to or toward the back or rear'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'backwards' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'backwards' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'backwards' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'backwards' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'backwards' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'backwards' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'backwards' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'backwards' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'backwards' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'backwards' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted