BACKWARD definition: toward the back or rear. See examples of backward used in a sentence.

BACKWARD definition: 1. not advanced: 2. towards the direction that is the opposite to the one in which you are facing…. Learn more.

Aug 5, 2025 · Understand the difference between “backward” and “backwards” and when to use each in American or British English for clear, correct writing.

If you do something backward, you do it in the opposite way to the usual way. He works backward, building a house from the top downward.

While technically backwards is interchangeable with backward, the overwhelmingly preferred spelling in the United States is backward, whether it is used as an adjective or an adverb.

To summarize, backward is an adjective that characterizes something as reverse or regressive, whereas backwards is primarily used as an adverb to describe a motion done in reverse.

Definition of backward adjective in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.

3 days ago · Adjective backward (comparative more backward, superlative most backward) Indicating position or direction. Situated toward or at the rear of something.

1. backward (s) and forward (s), in every detail; thoroughly. 2. bend, lean, or fall over backward, to exert oneself to the utmost; make a serious effort.

The meaning of BACKWARD is toward the back or rear. How to use backward in a sentence.