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forward

 
(fôr'wərd) pronunciation
adj.
    1. At, near, or belonging to the front or forepart; fore: the forward section of the aircraft.
    2. Located ahead or in advance: kept her eye on the forward horizon.
    1. Going, tending, or moving toward a position in front: a forward plunge down a flight of stairs.
    2. Sports. Advancing toward an opponent's goal.
    3. Moving in a prescribed direction or order for normal use: forward rolling of the cassette tape.
    1. Ardently inclined; eager.
    2. Lacking restraint or modesty; presumptuous or bold: a forward child.
    1. Being ahead of current economic, political, or technological trends; progressive: a forward concept.
    2. Deviating radically from convention or tradition; extreme.
  1. Exceptionally advanced; precocious.
  2. Of, relating to, or done in preparation for the future: bidding on forward contracts for corn.
adv. or for·wards (-wərdz)
  1. Toward or tending to the front; frontward: step forward.
  2. Into consideration: put forward a new proposal.
  3. In or toward the future: looking forward to seeing you.
    1. In the prescribed direction or sequence for normal use: rolled the tape forward.
    2. In an advanced position or a configuration registering a future time: set the clock forward.
    3. At or to a different time; earlier or later: moved the appointment forward, from Friday to Thursday.
n. Sports
  1. A player in certain games, such as basketball, soccer, or hockey, who is part of the forward line of the offense.
  2. The position played by such a person.
tr.v., -ward·ed, -ward·ing, -wards.
  1. To send on to a subsequent destination or address. See synonyms at send1.
  2. To help advance; promote. See synonyms at advance.

[Middle English, from Old English foreweard : fore-, fore- + -weard, -ward.]

forwardly for'ward·ly adv.
forwardness for'ward·ness n.

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Fowler's Modern English Usage:

forward, forwards

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1. For the adjective, the correct form in standard English is forward:
It has four forward gears and reverse controlled by a speed-sensing governor—Daily Telegraph, 1971
Already clouds of steam were rising, obscuring the forward view—D. Rutherford, 1990
The aggressor's own forward momentum even strengthens the force of the counter-blow against him—P. Lewis, 1991.
In addition to its directional meanings, forward has the meaning 'bold in manner, precocious':
Any child who requested a book by title he at once designated as 'forward' or 'lippy'—R. Roberts, 1971.


2. For the adverb, choice between the two forms is even less clear-cut than in the case with backward and backwards. The Old English (up to 1150)D (in 1897) attempted to distinguish forward as having a meaning that 'expresses a definite direction viewed in contrast with other directions', but doubts about this were expressed already by Fowler (1926, but evidently writing in about 1917). In some fixed expressions forward is either preferred or obligatory: backwards and forwards (preferred), come forward (obligatory), look forward (to; obligatory), put forward (= propose; obligatory). In some other meanings there is a preference for forward: 'to the front, into prominence'
(Hugh stepped forward. 'It's me, don't be frightened.'—Mary Wesley, 1983
Her mind refused to bring any such memory forward—E. Jolley, Australian English 1985
Then Nigel Carew drew his sabre and thrust it into the hand of his youthful son and pushed him forward—T. Hayden, 1991
A dozen parties came forward, but the best deal was from a consortium—Sunday Times, 2004)
, 'in advance, ahead'
(Civilian volunteers from the town carried sacks of grenades forward to the men in action—J. Ladd, 1979)
, 'onward so as to make progress'
(Rossi expressed surprise that the Commission was 'apparently no further forward than in 1984'—C. Rose, 1990
He had continually to be looking at his watch and calculating whether they were forward enough—G. E. Evans, 1993)
, 'towards the future, continuously onwards'
(The overall feeling is that the Jockey Club is genuinely concerned with helping the industry move forward—Independent, 1989).


3. The most common occurrence of forwards is in meanings denoting straightforward movement towards the front:
A control stick adjusted the airflow from the fan, to make the craft hover or go forwards—Motoring Which?, 1970
Certain single-celled organisms are propelled forwards in the water—New Scientist, 1971
Then he leaned forwards and touched Colin's forearm—Ian McEwan, 1981
It was Amelia who came forwards—K. Newman, 1990
The opponent sees the opening and moves forwards to sweep or punch you—D. Mitchell, 1991.
In all these examples, however, forward would be at least as natural (except perhaps in the 1990 example, in which the use of forwards emphasizes the physical action not always present in the expression come forward); in general forward occurs significantly more often as an adverb than does forwards, both in British English and in American English.

Previous:forum, fortuitous, fortuitously, forth
Next:foul, foully, fount, font, fount, fountain
In shipping, to send to another destination. A package addressed to a former address is forwarded or returned.
See also forwarding company.

Previous:Forum, Fortune 500, Fortuitous Loss
Next:Forward Buying, Forward Contract, Forward Pricing

adj

Definition: advancing, early
Antonyms: backward, late, later, past, reversing

adj

Definition: brash, impertinent
Antonyms: meek, reserved, shy, timid

adj

Definition: in front, first
Antonyms: back, last

adv

Definition: toward the front in order, time
Antonyms: back, backward, past, rear

n

Definition: frontward
Antonyms: backward, rearward

v

Definition: aid, expedite
Antonyms: cease, halt, hinder, impede, stop

v

Definition: send, ship
Antonyms: hold, keep, maintain

adv. also forwards 1. positioned near the enemy lines: troops moved to the forward areas.

2. in, near, or toward the bow or nose of a ship or aircraft.

v.

hand over or send (an official document): their final report was forwarded to the Commanding Officer.

See the Introduction, Abbreviations and Pronunciation for further details.

Word Tutor:

forwarding

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pronunciation

IN BRIEF: n. - The act of sending on to another destination; The advancement of some enterprise.

pronunciation Did you leave a forwarding address with the post office when you moved?

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Sign Language Videos:

forward

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sign description: Both bend B-hands press forward at the same time.




A term used in animal husbandry to mean close to, usually close to parturition, e.g. forward ewes are those close to lambing.

Random House Word Menu:

categories related to 'forward'

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Random House Word Menu by Stephen Glazier
For a list of words related to forward, see:

  See crossword solutions for the clue Forward.

Forward may refer to:

Contents

Physics

Sports

Literature

Music

Politics

Places

United States

Other

See also


Translations:

Forward

Top

Dansk (Danish)
adv. - frem, fremad, på levering
adj. - forrest, tidlig, ivrig
n. - forward
v. tr. - fremme, fremsende, videresende

idioms:

  • forwarding address    adresse til videresendelse

Nederlands (Dutch)
naar voren, van te voren, gereed, brutaal, progressief, voortaan, vroegrijp, doorzenden, bevorderen, verzenden, aanvaller

Français (French)
adv. - en avant, avant, dans le futur, à partir de, désormais, en avance rapide (une cassette)
adj. - effronté, avant, avancé, précoce, trop en avant, (Mil) (ligne) avant, (Fin) à terme
n. - (Sport) avant
v. tr. - expédier, envoyer, faire suivre, réexpédier

idioms:

  • forwarding address    nouvelle adresse (pour faire suivre une lettre)
  • go forward    avancer

Deutsch (German)
v. - befördern, nachschicken, voranbringen
n. - Stürmer
adj. - vorwärts, frühreif, fortschrittlich
adv. - vorwärts, nach vorn, voraus

idioms:

  • forwarding address    Nachsendeanschrift
  • go forward    weitergehen/-fahren, (fig) voranschreiten, vorgestellt werden

Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - προάγω, προωθώ, ευνοώ, στέλνω, αποστέλλω, μεταβιβάζω, διαβιβάζω, διεκπεραιώνω
n. - (αθλοπ.) εμπροσθοφύλακας, προωθημένος) κυνηγός
adj. - (εμ)πρόσθιος, μπροστινός, προοδευτικός, πρώιμος, προηγμένος, προχωρημένος, προπέτης, πρόθυμος, στέλνω, αποστέλλω, μεταβιβάζω, διαβιβάζω, διεκπεραιώνω
adv. - (προς τα) εμπρός, πρόσω, μπρος

idioms:

  • come forward    προθυμοποιούμαι, προσφέρομαι, εμφανίζομαι, παρουσιάζομαι
  • forwarding address    διεύθυνση μεταποστολής (από την αρχική διεύθυνση)

Italiano (Italian)
avanti, inoltrare, attaccante, precoce

idioms:

  • forwarding address    indirizzo del destinatario

Português (Portuguese)
v. - mover-se para frente, enviar
n. - atacante (m) (no futebol)
adj. - dianteiro
adv. - adiante

idioms:

  • forwarding address    endereço (m) de recebimento

Русский (Russian)
вперед, передний, нагловатый, скороспелый, посылать, пересылать

idioms:

  • forwarding address    адрес для отправки корреспонденции

Español (Spanish)
adv. - hacia adelante, adelante
adj. - delantero, precoz, adelantado
n. - delantero
v. tr. - enviar, expedir, reexpedir, adelantar, promover, patrocinar

idioms:

  • forwarding address    dirección (donde remitir la correspondencia), nueva dirección
  • go forward    avanzar, ir hacia adelante, (fig.) hacer progresos

Svenska (Swedish)
v. - befrämja, vidarebefordra
n. - forward (sport)
adj. - främre, framåtriktad, långt hunnen, framfusig, avancerad, framtida
adv. - framåt, vidare, före, för framtida leverans

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
向前地, 向前的, 迅速的, 早的, 期货, 序言, 发送, 前锋, 转寄, 运送, 促进

idioms:

  • forwarding address    转交地址

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
adv. - 向前地
adj. - 向前的, 迅速的, 早的
n. - 期貨, 序言, 發送, 前鋒
v. tr. - 轉寄, 運送, 促進

idioms:

  • forwarding address    轉交地址

한국어 (Korean)
adv. - 앞으로, 밖으로
adj. - 전방으로의, 촉진적인, 전진적인, 조숙한
n. - 전위, 선봉
v. tr. - 나아가게 하다, 전송하다

日本語 (Japanese)
adv. - 前方へ, 将来, 早めて, 外へ, 前へ
adj. - 前方の, 前部の, 前方への, 進んでいる, 急進的な, でしゃばりの, 早い, 早熟の, 進んで…する, 早熟な
n. - 前衛
v. - 転送する, 進める, 発送する, 送る

idioms:

  • come forward    進み出る, 用に供する, 役立つ
  • put forward    前方へ移す, 提案する, 目だたせる, 推薦する, 針を進める, 日付を早める, 目立たせる

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(فعل) يرسل , يعزز (الاسم) مقدمه (صفه) أمامي (ظرف) باكرا‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adv. - ‮קדימה, קודם, בעתיד, הלאה‬
adj. - ‮קדמי, חזיתי, מתקדם, עתידי, מוכן, להוט, מוקדם, נועז‬
n. - ‮חלוץ (בכדורגל), שופט-קו‬
v. tr. - ‮שיגר, שלח, קידם‬


 
 

 

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American Heritage Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
 Fowler's Modern English Usage. Oxford University Press. © 1999, 2004 All rights reserved.  Read more
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