👀 Toward the back 🚶 Back position ⬅️ At the back

rearward

1 7.4

In a direction toward the back

adverb
/ˈrɪrˌwərd/

: hacia atrás

The car skidded rearward after hitting the patch of ice on the road.
moved rearward
point rearward
anchor rearward

Examples

Politicians drive the ship of state by looking rearward and reacting to the world not so much as it is, but as it was.

Academic text (1993)
As there is less weight on the front castors, the user's center of gravity shifts rearward, causing greater instability.

Academic text (1994)
He twists and turns the car, glancing rearward for pursuit.

Fiction book (1994)
He fiddled with them, and quiet motors eased him rearward and reclined his backrest.

Fiction book (2002)
During the parade, the crowd shifted rearward to make space for the marching band.
He looked rearward to check if anyone was following him.

Synonyms

back

vsrearward

∞ 1.0

Toward the rear of something

is the general term for movement toward what lies behind

behind

vsrearward

∞ 1.0

At the back of someone or something

is the more general directional term for movement toward the back

aft

vsrearward

Specialized

45 7.0

Near the back of a ship or the tail of a plane

is the general directional word not tied to craft parts

backward

vsrearward

26 1.0

Facing the back

is the simple directional expression for movement toward what is behind

retrograde

vsrearward

1 7.9

Moving backward or against the usual direction

is the neutral term for simple movement toward what is behind

posteriorly

vsrearward

Specialized

1 7.7

Toward the back of a person or thing

is the common directional word used for the same movement

sternward

vsrearward

Specialized

1 8.1

Toward the back of a ship or boat

is the general direction term not limited to vessels

tailward

vsrearward

1 7.3

Toward the back end of an animal or object

is broader, applying to direction toward the back in any context

retrogradely

vsrearward

Specialized

1 9.2

Moving backward along the usual flow, for example in blood or nerves

is the everyday directional word without technical implication

retral

vsrearward

9.9

At or toward the back of something

is the general directional term rather than a positional adjective

Antonyms

forward

120 1.0

Near the front in the direction someone faces or moves

frontward

1 4.7

Toward the front of something

Surface Forms

rearward positive

rearwards positive

Morphology

rearward = rear (transparent) = rear + ward

The adverbial sense is derived by adding '-ward' to 'rear' to express direction, a regular and transparent pattern.

Etymology

Rearward as an adverb comes from rear 'back' plus -ward 'toward', the same parts you see in forward, so it simply means 'toward the back'.