aback

Definition

Towards the back or rear; backwards.

Etymology

From Middle English abak, from Old English onbæc, equivalent to a- (“towards”) + back. Compare West Frisian tebek (“aback”, adverb, literally “to/at back”), Swedish tillbaka (idem.).

Example Sentences

• "The mild, though licentious reign, of Louis the Sixteenth, threw France far aback, in her ambitious career; but it gave birth to that revolution, wherein, her warlike propensities and territorial resources were unfolded with tenfold efficacy."
• "Then stopped, and bounded aback, and away as if in fear, / That I saw her no more; then I wondered though sitting close anear / Was a she-wolf great and grisly."
• "hoyed aback o' the fire"

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