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Behind

[bih-hahynd]

Example Sentences Origin

preposition

at or toward the rear of: Look behind the house.

not keeping up with, later than; after: behind schedule.

in the state of making less progress than: We can't afford to fall behind our competitors.

on the farther side of; beyond: behind the mountain.

originating, supporting, or promoting: Who's behind this program?

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hidden or unrevealed by: Malice lay behind her smile.

at the controls of: behind the wheel of a car.

COLLAPSE

adverb

at or toward the rear; rearward: to lag behind.

in a place, state, or stage already passed.

10.

in arrears; behindhand: to be behind in one's rent.

11.

slow, as a watch or clock: more than 20 minutes behind.

12.

as a cause or often latent feature of: Behind their harassment lay the traditional fear of foreigners.

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13.

in a situation that exists afterward: The victim left behind a large family.

14.

Archaic. in reserve; to come: Greater support is yet behind.

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Behind is always a great word to know.

So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:

a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.

a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.

LEARN MORE UNUSUAL WORDS WITH WORD DYNAMO...

adjective

15.

following: the man behind.

noun

16.

Informal. the buttocks.

Origin:
before 900; Middle English behinde(n), Old English behindan; for adv. suffix -an compare before. See be-, hind¹

Synonyms
1, 2. Behind, after both refer to a position following something else. Behind applies primarily to position in space, and suggests that one person or thing is at the back of another; it may also refer to (a fixed) time: He stood behind the chair. You are behind the appointed time. After applies primarily to time; when it denotes position in space, it is not used with precision, and refers usually to bodies in motion: Rest after a hard day's work. They entered the room, one after another.

Usage note
See back¹.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To Behind

Example Sentences

The idea behind two-tier wage programs is to stretch out the progression between tenure and wages.

Today you cannot order a coffee, buy a bagel, or pay for a photocopy without being asked to leave your change behind for.

Parking is concentrated alongside curbs, in lots behind shops, and in garages off rear alleys.

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The idea behind two-tier wage programs is to stretch out the progression between tenure and wages.

Today you cannot order a coffee, buy a bagel, or pay for a photocopy without being asked to leave your change behind for.

Parking is concentrated alongside curbs, in lots behind shops, and in garages off rear alleys.

Satellite data look behind the scenes of deadly earthquake.

There is some controversy over who first placed parabolic mirrors behind flames to boost candlepower.

The rain and weird weather has put our barley behind schedule.

The science behind moving species under threat from climate change.

We drive behind along the trail, occasionally glimpsing the impalas and the wild dogs through the scrub.

Martino hid a small vegetable garden and citrus orchard behind curving walls.

Gazzaniga explains the new science behind an ancient philosophical question.

Close behind is their mother, scrambling frantically through the rubble with her skirts hiked up.

Of course, these methods do leave the weeds' roots and crowns behind to grow again.

The story behind it is that some families had difficulty with speech.

After she dried off, she put on a blue velour robe that was hanging behind the door.

Tequila has become a tony tipple, with premium bottles crowding the shelves behind bars and along liquor store aisles.

Aiming to beat hazardous turbulence behind planes.

The story behind it is central to the epic struggle of the civil rights movement.

He loves to watch the coyotes and javelinas go by behind our backyard.

I'd always wanted to see something of the world they'd left behind.

In spring, flowering spiraea and coral bells bloom behind it.

When the dry amber began to crumble, the officials instead tried hiding the room behind thin wallpaper.

Small recesses in the wall behind the sofa are shaped to echo the square planting beds flanking the fountain.

Degas also wanted to get behind the scenes, but that wasn't easy.

As the war wound down, he continued to chafe behind the lines.

It's fun to walk the entire square guessing from the ancient signs what was once for sale behind each store front.

Hump behind the shoulders is a lump of fat on the back of the neck.

Once the entrance locks behind him, he discovers that.

But in both the emirates all the big decisions are still taken behind closed doors.

Get the surprising facts behind winter's wackiest weather.

Learn the latest psychology behind why it's hard to be happy, and take our quiz to learn how your.

Openings in the stucco wall behind the banco frame views of greenery on the other side.

If only recognition and comfort blazed behind successful scientists as it did behind successful entertainers.

Mortgage lenders and the financial industry behind them had every reason to know.

Sloppy male kissers may have a method behind their messiness.

The worm exposes the sophisticated international criminal networks behind modern computer viruses.

Confronted with a hill full of gold, miners removed the hill and the gold and left a mess behind.

They knew that three less two equaled one trigger-man left behind.

Behind the plan is another perhaps equally important agenda:.

America's housing market may be a year or so behind.

Get the facts behind the frame in this online-only gallery.

Researchers zero in on the culprits behind colony collapse disorder.

With a few tips and good directions, drivers need not fear getting behind the wheel.

That, in essence, is the philosophy behind the simple structure pictured here.

Congress has placed behind the wall of copyright many items that used to be in the public domain.

Jewels were something to hide behind as, chronically shy, she always wished to hide.

View exclusive photographs and get the facts behind the frame.

For scientists, one of the lessons is that there are human beings behind every biological sample used in the laboratory.

Womens recruiting budgets continue to lag behind mens in many big-time programs.

Although bitcoin is cool there's no economic intuition behind it.

Learn more about the photographers and the stories behind their pictures.

Many evolutionists support some version of intelligence behind all the complexity and design in the world.

Recently, science writers have introduced us to life's third certainty, right behind death and taxes.

For years its spending lagged behind the rich-world average.

In areas prone to periodic droughts, for example, the reservoir behind a dam can store water for future use.

The premise behind a filter is simple enough: smaller objects slip through the holes, leaving the larger ones behind.

No one talks but for the occasional murmur, tactfully hidden behind fan or hand.

I've heard it before but didn't feel it until now, with the surfers behind me riding the waves.

He then got up, leaving an impression of his body behind.

The horizon would absorb light originating from behind a black hole, creating a shadow visible at high enough resolution.

He couldn't figure out how to photograph whatever might be hiding behind the walls and fences of industrial plants.

Transgenic trees and plants may break down the pollutants left behind at sites ranging from former factories to firing ranges.

Shelmerdine, you can learn what transpired behind those long-gone walls.

Good in borders or beds behind mounding plants that cover lower parts of stems, or in large containers with low annuals at base.

Bombs and bullets can kill years after the battles have ended, by leaving behind toxins and contaminants.

Scrambling to the top-and staying safely behind my red-coated.

Behind the top notch, attach the start of some embroidery.

The neurotransmitter behind addictive behavior may also unleash paranoia.

In a minute, the dog has become a dark speck on the ice behind us.

That's the thinking behind these casual arrangements of pumpkins.

Ships' graveyard may be behind high levels of banned chemicals.

There is an arboretum and nature trails behind the museum.

Paint shelves and the wall behind them an eye-catching color to showcase books and accessories.

Although scientists have long understood the basic mechanism behind this bioluminescence.

Behind the set, pneumatic pods inflated to become ticket-windows and dressing rooms.

Then she created her own window by placing a mirror behind the daybed to reflect the light and surrounding landscape.

Behind one of three doors is a brand-new automobile.

From behind her, a beefy brute with a scar on his cheek clamps a meaty hand over her mouth.

Cut the lattice supports to fit snugly between the posts behind the bench.

For years big ship propulsion had a standard configuration: a propeller in the rear with a rudder behind it to steer.

Even so, the notes he left behind show that he was far ahead of his peers.

Its previous owners had left behind moldy bags of clothes and thrown.

The new study indicates that congestion in axons is the likely culprit behind amyloid-filled plaques and tau-rich tangles.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

behind (bɪˈhaɪnd)

—*prep*
1.	in or to a position further back than; at the rear of; at the back of
2.	in the past in relation to: I've got the exams behind me now
3.	late according to; not keeping up with: running behind schedule
4.	concerning the circumstances surrounding: the reasons behind his departure
5.	backing or supporting: I'm right behind you in your application

—*adv*
6.	in or to a position further back; following
7.	remaining after someone's departure: he left it behind
8.	in debt; in arrears: to fall behind with payments

—*adj*
9.	(postpositive) in a position further back; retarded: the man behind prodded me

—n
10.	informal the buttocks
11.	Australian rules football a score of one point made by kicking the ball over the behind line between a goalpost and one of the smaller outer posts (behind posts)

[Old English behindan]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

behind

O.E. behindan "behind, after," from bi "by" + hindan "from behind" (see hind (adj.)). Euphemistic meaning "backside of a person" is from 1786. Phrase behind the times is from 1905.

Slang Dictionary

behind definition

n.
the posterior; the buttocks. (This euphemism is losing out to plain old ass and butt on TV and elsewhere.) : She needs some jeans that will flatter her behind.

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source

American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

behind

In addition to the idioms beginning with behind, also see come from behind; drop behind; fall behind; get behind; power behind the throne; put behind one; wet behind the ears; with one arm tied behind one's back.