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Etymology data from Wiktionary via Wiktextract (CC BY-SA 4.0). Chinese character data from the 說文解字, the Taiwan MOE 國語辭典簡編本 (CC BY-ND 3.0 TW) and HSK/TOCFL lists.

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English

behind

/bɪˈhaɪnd/
At or to the back or far side of.

    Etymology graph

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    • meaning component
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    Origin

    From Middle English behinde, behinden, from Old English behindan (“on the back side of, behind”), from Proto-West Germanic *bihindan, *bihindini (“on the back side of, in the rear of, behind”), from Proto-West Germanic *bi- + *hindō (“the hind side, back part”), equivalent to be- + hind. Compare Old Saxon bihindan (“behind”, adverb), Middle High German behinter (“behind; back”).

    From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

    Lineage

    • inheritedMiddle Englishbehinde
      • inheritedOld Englishbehindan “on the back side of, behind”
        • inheritedProto-West Germanic*bihindan
          • derivedProto-West Germanic*bi- “be-”
            • derivedProto-West Germanic*bī
              • inheritedProto-Germanic*bi “near, by”
            • inheritedProto-Germanic*bi- “be-”
              • derivedProto-Indo-European*glemb-
    • prefixEnglishbe- “By, near, next to, around, close to.”
      • inheritedMiddle Englishbi-
        • inheritedOld Englishbe- “be-”
        • derivedOld Englishbī- “by, near, around”
    • surface analysisEnglishhind “Located at the rear (most often said of animals' body parts).”

    Related: Old Saxon bihindan

    Meanings

    prep
    1. At or to the back or far side of.
    2. Concealed by (something serving as a facade or disguise).
    3. In the past, from the viewpoint of.
    4. After in physical progress or distance.
    5. After in developmental progress, score, grade, etc.; inferior to.
    6. After in time.
    adv
    1. At or in the rear or back part of something.
    2. In a rearward direction.
    3. So as to come after someone or something in position, distance, advancement, ranking, time, etc.
    4. So as to be still in place after someone or something has departed or ceased to exist.
    5. Backward in time or order of succession; past.
    6. Behind the scenes in a theatre; backstage.
    adj
    1. Not advanced to the required or expected degree; overdue or in arrears.
    2. Slow.
    noun
    1. The rear, back-end.
    2. The buttocks, bottom, butt.
    3. Synonym of ass (“synecdochic: a person or their body”).
    4. A one-point score.
    5. The catcher.
    6. In the Eton College field game, any of a group of players consisting of two "shorts" (who try to kick the ball over the bully) and a "long" (who defends the goal).

    Sources

    • Wiktionary (via Wiktextract / kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0
    • Wiktionary: behind