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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.

Explanations are written by a local model (gemma4) and only published after a verification pass against the cited sources. How it works.

English

forward

/ˈfɔːwəd/
Situated toward or at the front of something.

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    Origin

    Etymology 1

    From Middle English foreward, from Old English foreweard (“forward, inclined to the front, fore, early, former”), from Proto-Germanic *fura- (“fore-”), *warþaz (“turned”), equivalent to fore + -ward. Cognate with Dutch voorwaarts (“forward”), German vorwärts (“forward”).

    Etymology 2

    From Middle English foreward, from Old English foreweard (“condition, bargain, agreement, contract, treaty, assurance”), equivalent to fore- + ward (“ward, keeping”). Cognate with Scots forward (“covenant, compact”), Dutch voorwaarde (“condition, terms, proviso, stipulation”). More at fore-, ward.

    From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

    Lineage

    • derivedMiddle Englishforeward
      • derivedOld Englishforeweard “forward, inclined to the front, fore, early, former”
        • derivedProto-Germanic*fura- “fore-”
      • inheritedOld Englishforeweard “forward, inclined to the front, fore, early, former”
    • surface analysisEnglishfore “Former; occurring earlier (in some order); previous.”
    • suffixEnglish-ward “Forming adverbs denoting course or direction to, or motion or tendency toward, as in "backward", "t…”
      • inheritedOld English-weard
        • inheritedProto-Germanic*wardaz
    • inheritedMiddle Englishforeward
    • prefixEnglishfore- “Before: the root is happening earlier in time.”
      • inheritedMiddle Englishfore- “fore-”
        • inheritedOld Englishfore-
    • surface analysisEnglishward “A warden; a guard; a guardian or watchman.”

    Related: Dutch voorwaarts, German vorwärts, Scots forward, Dutch voorwaarde

    Meanings

    adj
    1. Situated toward or at the front of something.
    2. Situated toward or near the enemy lines.
    3. Acting in or pertaining to the direction in which someone or something is facing.
    4. Acting in or pertaining to the direction of travel or movement.
    5. Moving in the desired direction of progress.
    6. Having the usual order or sequence.
    adv
    1. At, near or towards the front of something.
    2. At, near, or towards the bow of a vessel (with the frame of reference within the vessel).
    3. In the direction in which someone or something is facing.
    4. In the desired or usual direction of movement or progress, physically or figuratively; onwards.
    5. So that front and back are in the usual orientation.
    6. In the usual order or sequence.
    verb
    1. To advance, promote.
    2. To send (a letter, email etc.) on to a third party.
    3. To assemble (a book) by sewing sections, attaching cover boards, and so on.
    4. To arrive, come.
    noun
    1. One of the eight players (comprising two props, one hooker, two locks, two flankers and one number eight, collectively known as the pack) whose primary task is to gain and maintain possession of the ball (compare back).
    2. A player on a team in football (soccer) in the row nearest to the opposing team's goal, who are therefore principally responsible for scoring goals.
    3. An umbrella term for a centre or winger in ice hockey.
    4. The small forward or power forward position; two frontcourt positions that are taller than guards but shorter than centers.
    5. The front part of a vessel.
    6. An e-mail message that is forwarded to another recipient or recipients; an electronic chain letter.

    Sources

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