back-and-forth
[ bak-uh n-fawrth, -fohrth, -uh nd- ]
/ ˈbæk ənˈfɔrθ, -ˈfoʊrθ, -ənd- /
adjective
backward and forward; side to side; to and fro: a back-and-forth shuttling of buses to the stadium; the back-and-forth movement of a clock's pendulum.
noun
unresolved argument or discussion.
Origin of back-and-forth
First recorded in 1605–15
Words nearby back-and-forth
back walkover,
back water,
back yard,
back, sack, and crack,
back-alley,
back-and-forth,
back-check,
back-cloth,
back-end load,
back-load,
back-mutate
Definition for back and forth (2 of 3)
Origin of back
1
before 1000; Middle English
bak, Old English
bæc back of the body; cognate with Old Frisian
bek, Old Saxon, Old Norse
bak; perhaps < Indo-European
*bhogo- bending; cf.
bacon
SYNONYMS FOR back
synonym study for back
31.
Back,
hind,
posterior,
rear refer to something situated behind something else.
Back means the opposite of front:
back window.
Hind, and the more formal word
posterior, suggest the rearmost of two or more often similar objects:
hind legs; posterior lobe.
Rear is used of buildings, conveyances, etc., and in military language it is the opposite of fore:
rear end of a truck; rear echelon.
usage note for back
55. Although some object to their use, the phrases
in back of and the shorter—and much older—
back of with the meaning “behind” are fully established as standard in American English:
The car was parked (
in )
back of the house. Both phrases occur in all types of speech and writing.
OTHER WORDS FROM back
back·less, adjectiveWORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH back
back up backupDefinition for back and forth (3 of 3)
back
2
[ bak ]
/ bæk /
adverb
Verb Phrases
go back on,
- to be treacherous or faithless to; betray: to go back on friends.
- to fail to keep; renege on: to go back on promises.
Origin of back
2
First recorded in 1480–90; aphetic variant of
aback
British Dictionary definitions for back and forth (1 of 2)
Word Origin for back
Old English
bæc; related to Old Norse
bak, Old Frisian
bek, Old High German
bah
British Dictionary definitions for back and forth (2 of 2)
back
2
/ (bæk) /
noun
a large tub or vat, esp one used by brewers
Word Origin for back
C17: from Dutch
bak tub, cistern, from Old French
bac, from Vulgar Latin
bacca (unattested) vessel for liquids
Medical definitions for back and forth
back
[ băk ]
n.
The posterior portion of the trunk of the human body between the neck and the pelvis; the dorsum.
The backbone or spine.
Idioms and Phrases with back and forth (1 of 2)
back and forth
Also, backward(s) and forward(s). To and fro, moving in one direction and then the opposite and so making no progress in either. For example, The clock pendulum swung back and forth. The term is also used figuratively, as in The lawyers argued the point backwards and forwards for an entire week. [c. 1600]
Idioms and Phrases with back and forth (2 of 2)
back