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backwards
(redirected from leaning over backwards)

   Also found in: Wikipedia 0.03 sec.
back·ward  (bkwrd)
adj.
1. Directed or facing toward the back or rear.
2. Done or arranged in a manner or order that is opposite to previous occurrence or normal use.
3. Unwilling to act; reluctant; shy.
4. Behind others in progress or development: The technology was backward, but the system worked.
adv. or back·wards (-wrdz)
1. To or toward the back or rear.
2. With the back leading.
3. In a reverse manner or order.
4. To, toward, or into the past.
5. Toward a worse or less advanced condition.

backward·ly adv.
backward·ness n.
Usage Note: The adverb may be spelled backward or backwards, and these forms are interchangeable: stepped backward; a mirror facing backwards. In Standard English, however, the adjective has no -s: a backward view.

backwards or backward
Adverb
1. towards the rear
2. with the back foremost
3. in the reverse of the usual direction
4. into a worse state: the Gothic novel's been going backwards since Radcliffe
5. bend over backwards Informal to make a special effort to please someone
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Adv.1.backwards - at or to or toward the back or rear; "he moved back"; "tripped when he stepped backward"; "she looked rearward out the window of the car"
2.backwardsbackwards - 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'"; "the child put her jersey on backward"

backwards or backward
adverb towards the rear, behind you, in reverse, rearwards
Translations
Spanish backwards [ˈbækwədz] adv [move, go] → hacia atrás; [read a list] → al revés; [fall] → de espaldas;
to know sth backwards or (US) backwards and forwards (col) → saberse algo al dedillo

French backwards [ˈbækwədz] back adv [move, go] → en arrière; [read a list] → à l'envers, à rebours; [fall] → à la renverse; [walk] → à reculons;
(in time) → en arrière, vers le passé;
to know sth backwards or (US) backwards and forwards (inf) → connaître qch sur le bout des doigts

German backwards [ˈbækwədz] advrückwärts;
(read) → von hinten nach vorne;
(fall) → nach hinten;
(in time) → zurück;
to know sth backwards, to know sth backwards and forwards (US) → etw in- und auswendig kennen

Italian backwards [ˈbækwədz] advindietro; [fall, walk] → all'indietro;
to know sth backwards or (US) backwards and forwards (col) → sapere qc a menadito

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? Mentioned in ? References in periodicals archive
 
For both Sen and Appiah, one senses a leaning over backwards to weaken the identification of Muslim with an enemy of the West and modernity, or African with the primitive.
 
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