different between weak vs backward
weak
English
Etymology
From Middle English weyk, wayk, weik, waik, from Old Norse veikr (“weak”), from Proto-Germanic *waikwaz (“weak, yielded, pliant, bendsome”), from Proto-Indo-European *weyk- (“to bend, wind”). Cognate with Old English w?c (“weak, bendsome”), Saterland Frisian wook (“soft, gentle, tender”), West Frisian weak (“soft”), Dutch week (“soft, weak”), German weich (“weak, soft”), Norwegian veik (“weak”), Swedish vek (“weak, pliant”), Icelandic veikur (“bendsome, weak”). Related to Old English w?can (“to yield”). Doublet of week and wick. (Can this(+) etymology be sourced?)
This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.
Pronunciation
- enPR: w?k, IPA(key): /wi?k/
- Rhymes: -i?k
- Homophone: week
Adjective
weak (comparative weaker, superlative weakest)
- Lacking in force (usually strength) or ability.
- weak with hunger, mad with love
- Unable to sustain a great weight, pressure, or strain.
- Unable to withstand temptation, urgency, persuasion, etc.; easily impressed, moved, or overcome; accessible; vulnerable.
- 1703, Nicholas Rowe, The Fair Penitent Act I, scene I:
- Guard thy heart / On this weak side, where most our nature fails.
- 1703, Nicholas Rowe, The Fair Penitent Act I, scene I:
- Dilute, lacking in taste or potency.
- (grammar) Displaying a particular kind of inflection, including:
- (Germanic languages, of verbs) Regular in inflection, lacking vowel changes and having a past tense with -d- or -t-.
- (Germanic languages, of nouns) Showing less distinct grammatical endings.
- (Germanic languages, of adjectives) Definite in meaning, often used with a definite article or similar word.
- (chemistry) That does not ionize completely into anions and cations in a solution.
- (physics) One of the four fundamental forces associated with nuclear decay.
- (slang) Bad or uncool.
- (mathematics, logic) Having a narrow range of logical consequences; narrowly applicable. (Often contrasted with a strong statement which implies it.)
- Resulting from, or indicating, lack of judgment, discernment, or firmness; unwise; hence, foolish.
- Not having power to convince; not supported by force of reason or truth; unsustained.
- Lacking in vigour or expression.
- Not prevalent or effective, or not felt to be prevalent; not potent; feeble.
- (stock exchange) Tending towards lower prices.
- (photography) Lacking contrast.
Synonyms
- (lacking in force or ability): feeble, frail, powerless, vincible, assailable, vulnerable
- (lacking in taste or potency): dilute, watery
- See also Thesaurus:weak
Antonyms
- (lacking in force or ability): healthy, powerful, robust, strong, invincible
- (lacking in taste or potency): potent, robust, strong
- (chemistry: that does not ionize completely): strong
Derived terms
Translations
Anagrams
- Wake, wake, weka
West Frisian
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /v???k/
Adjective
weak
- (Clay) soft
Inflection
Alternative forms
- wêk (Wood)
Further reading
- “weak (I)”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011
weak From the web:
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- what weakened the league of nations
- what weakens coral exoskeletons
- what weaknesses should i say in an interview
- what weakness of the articles of confederation
- what weakens a hurricane
- what weakness is revealed in this excerpt from serena
- what weakened the asante kingdom
backward
English
Etymology
From Middle English bakwarde, abakward, equivalent to back (adverb) +? -ward.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /?bæk.w?(?)d/
- (US) enPR: b?k'w?rd, IPA(key): /?bækw?d/
Adjective
backward (comparative more backward, superlative most backward)
- Situated toward or at the rear of something.
- The silt collects in the backward part of the tank.
- Acting or moving in the direction opposite to that in which someone or something is facing.
- Acting or moving in the direction opposite to the usual direction of movement.
- Engage the lock to prevent backward rotation of the wheel.
- Synonym: retrograde
- (figuratively) Acting or moving oppositely to the desired direction of progress.
- Reversed in order or sequence.
- This backward writing is hard to read.
- Reluctant or unable to advance or act.
- (may be offensive) Of a culture, country, practice etc., undeveloped or unsophisticated.
- They were a backward people without any writing.
- (may be offensive) Slow to apprehend; having difficulties in learning.
- Lacking progressive or enlightened thought; outdated.
- The party's ideas and policies are very backward.
- Synonyms: antediluvian, antiquated, backwards, parachronistic, retrograde; see also Thesaurus:obsolete
- Antonym: progressive
- Late or behindhand.
- Synonyms: overdue, tardy; see also Thesaurus:overdue
- (chess) Of a pawn, further behind than pawns of the same colour on adjacent files and unable to be moved forward safely.
- (cricket) On that part of the field behind the batsman's popping crease.
- (cricket) Further behind the batsman's popping crease than something else.
- (obsolete) Unwilling; averse; reluctant.
- (obsolete) Already past or gone; bygone.
- Synonyms: forepast, historical; see also Thesaurus:past
Usage notes
Backwards is possible as a synonym for most senses, both adjectival and adverbial.
- Strictly speaking, in British English backward is an adjective and backwards is an adverb:
- It was a backward move vs He moved backwards
- In American English, the rule may be reversed, and in written American English, backward is more common for the adverb. This follows the same usage for similar words ending in -ward/-wards and -way/-ways. See also -wise.
- Only the -ward forms are commonly used in combination with an adjective, e.g.:
- A backward-facing statue.
Synonyms
- (toward the back): hindwards, rearward, retrograde
- (in the opposite direction of usual): contrariwise, reversedly; See also Thesaurus:contrarily
- (so that the back precedes the front): back to front, in reverse; See also Thesaurus:back to front
Derived terms
Synonyms
- (reversed): mirror image, switched, back to front
- (undeveloped): crude, dated, obsolete, primitive; see also Thesaurus:obsolete
Translations
Adverb
backward (comparative more backward, superlative most backward)
- At, near or towards the rear of something.
- The passenger turned around and walked backward, towards the tail of the aircraft.
- In a direction opposite to that in which someone or something is facing or normally pointing.
- He tilted his head backward.
- The grandfather clock toppled backward and crashed to the ground.
- Her arm was bent backward at an odd angle.
- In a direction opposite to the usual direction of movement.
- In reverse gear the wheel turns backward.
- (figuratively) Oppositely to the desired direction of progress, or from a better to a worse state.
- This project seems to be going backward.
- 1700, John Dryden, Theodore and Honoria
- The work went backward.
- In a reversed orientation; back to front.
- He had his cap on backward.
- In a reversed order or sequence.
- A palindrome reads the same backward as forward.
- Toward or into the past;
- As we begin the new millennium, it behoves us to look backward as well as forward.
- (obsolete) In the past.
- By way of reflection; reflexively. (Can we add an example for this sense?)
- (Can we find and add a quotation of Sir J. Davies to this entry?)
Usage notes
See notes under adjective sense.
Antonyms
- forward, forwards
Translations
Noun
backward
- The state behind or past.
Translations
Related terms
- backwards
References
- backward at OneLook Dictionary Search
- backward in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
Anagrams
- draw back, drawback
backward From the web:
- what backwards
- what backwards compatible for ps5
- what backwardation means
- what backward compatibility
- what's backwards compatible on xbox one
- what backwards compatible for ps4
- what's backward integration
- what's backwards in french
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