forward
UK /ˈfɔːwəd/ · US /ˈfɔɹwəɹd/ adjective, adverb, verb, noun, proper noun
Forms further forward farther forward forwarder furthest forward farthest forward forwardmost forwardest forwards forwarding forwarded foreward forrard forrad forred
- adjective Situated toward or at the front of something. “The fire was confined to the forward portion of the store.”
- adjective (of troops, guns etc.) Situated toward or near the enemy lines. “The forward battalion took a hammering.”
- adjective Acting in or pertaining to the direction in which someone or something is facing. “My forward vision is fine, but my peripheral vision is poor.”
- adjective Acting in or pertaining to the direction of travel or movement. “forward motion, forward thrust, forward momentum”
- adjective (figuratively) Moving in the desired direction of progress. “This is an important forward step for the country.”
- adjective Having the usual order or sequence. “The front of the fire engine has backward writing, that can be read in a mirror, as well as forward writing.”
- adjective (finance, commerce) Expected or scheduled to take place in the future. “The stock price is currently 12 times forward earnings.”
- adjective Advanced beyond the usual degree; advanced for the season; precocious. “These students are very forward in their learning.”
- adverb At, near or towards the front of something. “She was sitting well forward in the railway carriage.”
- adverb (nautical) At, near, or towards the bow of a vessel (with the frame of reference within the vessel).
- adverb In the direction in which someone or something is facing. “I leant forward to get a better look.”
- adverb In the desired or usual direction of movement or progress, physically or figuratively; onwards. “After spending an hour stuck in the mud, we could once again move forward.”
- adverb So that front and back are in the usual orientation. “Don't wear your baseball cap backward; turn it forward.”
- adverb In the usual order or sequence. “A palindrome reads the same backward as forward.”
- adverb Into the future. “From this day forward, there will be no more brussels sprouts at the cafeteria.”
- adverb To an earlier point in time. See also bring forward. “The meeting has been moved forward an hour. It was at 3 o'clock; now it's at 2 o'clock.”
- verb (transitive) To advance, promote. “He did all he could to forward the interests of the school.”
- verb (transitive) To send (a letter, email etc.) on to a third party. “I'll be glad to forward your mail to you while you're gone.”
- verb (transitive, bookbinding) To assemble (a book) by sewing sections, attaching cover boards, and so on.
- verb (intransitive, Caribbean) To arrive, come.
Synonyms
forecast predicted bold fresh impertinent brazen anterior front ahead forth on onward onwards forwards hereon pass on attacker striker front man forward contract send on advancing forward-moving frontward frontwards forrad forrard forrader fore
Antonyms
back posterior rear antonym(s) of restrained backward backwards rearwards in reverse into the past reverse
Etymology
From Middle English foreward, from Old English foreweard (“forward, inclined to the front, fore, early, former”), from Proto-Germanic *fura- (“fore-”), *warþaz (“turned”), equivalent to fore + -ward. Cognate with Dutch voorwaarts (“forward”), German vorwärts (“forward”).
From Middle English foreward, from Old English foreweard (“condition, bargain, agreement, contract, treaty, assurance”), equivalent to fore- + ward (“ward, keeping”). Cognate with Scots forward (“covenant, compact”), Dutch voorwaarde (“condition, terms, proviso, stipulation”). More at fore-, ward.
Webster’s 1913
- noun An agreement; a covenant; a promise. [Obs.]
- adverb Toward a part or place before or in front; onward; in advance; progressively; --opposed to backward.
- adjective Near, or at the fore part; in advance of something else; as, the forward gun in a ship, or the forward ship in a fleet.
- adjective Ready; prompt; strongly inclined; in an ill sense, overready; to hasty.
Etymology [OE., fr. AS. foreweard; fore before + weard a ward. See Ward, n.]
Etymology [AS. forweard, foreweard; for, fore + -weardes; akin to G. vorwärts. The s is properly a genitive ending. See For, Fore, and -ward, -wards.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “forward”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details