forwards

Formsfurther forwards, farther forwards, furthest forwards, farthest forwards

1. 1
   adverb

   Toward the front or ahead, in the direction something is moving or facing.

   He pushed the heavy cart forwards along the narrow corridor.

   The dancers all stepped forwards on the final beat.

   Similarforward

   Oppositebackwards, backward, back

   Note

   An adverb built from forward plus the old adverbial -s, the same ending heard in backwards and afterwards. It covers most of what forward does as an adverb. It is graded with a separate word placed in front, as in further forwards or farthest forwards, rather than with an ending. Unlike the adjective use, where the -s can sound off, the adverb is fully at home: step forwards, lean forwards.

2. 2
   noun

   Plural of forward.

   Both forwards sprinted toward the goal as the cross came in.

   The new forwards struggled to find space against a packed defense.

   Note

   Mostly a sports plural. In rugby the forwards are the eight-player pack (props, hooker, locks, flankers and number eight), set against the backs. Soccer, ice hockey and basketball use it for their attacking or frontcourt players. Off the field, forwards can also mean forwarded emails, the chain letters that circulate from inbox to inbox.

3. 3
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of forward.

   The mail clerk forwards letters to residents who have moved.

   He forwards the meeting notes to anyone who missed the call.

   Note

   The present-tense verb shares its spelling with the plural noun, though the two come from different words. As a verb it nearly always takes an object. Someone forwards an email to a colleague, forwards a cause, or, in bookbinding, forwards a book by sewing its sections and attaching boards. In Caribbean use it can stand without an object and simply means that someone arrives.

4. 4
   adjectivenonstandard

   Directed toward or located at the front; moving ahead rather than back.

   Each forwards stride carried the runner closer to the line.

   The crane made a smooth forwards motion as it lowered the beam.

   Similarforward

   Oppositebackwards, backward

   Note

   Before a noun, the -s form becomes uncertain: forwards as an adjective is sometimes judged nonstandard. A forwards stride or a forwards motion will be understood. Still, forward is the choice no reader will question: a forward stride, a forward motion. The -s belongs to the adverb, and it reads most naturally there.

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