What does BACKWARD mean?

Pronunciation
/ˈbækwərd/
Letters
8
Scrabble score
20
Words With Friends score
22
How common
Fairly common

Meaning

adverb

  1. at or to or toward the back or rear“he moved back”
  2. 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'”
  3. in or to or toward a past time“set the clocks back an hour”

adjective

  1. directed or facing toward the back or rear“a backward view”
  2. (used of temperament or behavior) marked by a retiring nature“a backward lover”
  3. retarded in intellectual development
  4. having made less than normal progress“an economically backward country”

Definitions from Princeton WordNet 3.0.

Anagrams of BACKWARD

drawback20

Words inside BACKWARD

55 shorter words can be made from these letters. Here are the most useful.

award9 back12 bard7bark10 brad7 carb8card7 crab8 dark9 draw8 rack10 ward8 arc5 ark7 bad6 bar5 bra5 cab7 cad6car5 rad4raw6 war6 aa2 ab4 ad3 ar2 aw5ba4ka6

See every word in the unscrambler →

Word lists

Questions

Is BACKWARD a valid word in word games?

BACKWARD is in the ENABLE word list, which many word games use, so it is very likely to be accepted. Check your game's own dictionary if a play is challenged.

How many points is BACKWARD worth?

BACKWARD is worth 20 points with Scrabble letter values and 22 with Words With Friends values, before any bonus squares.

What words can you make from BACKWARD?

55 other words, including BACK, BAD, WAR and CAR.