Etymograph

English

forward

Forward comes from Middle English foreward, from Old English foreweard ‘inclined to the front’, from fore- + -ward.

  1. Old Englishc. 450–1150foreweard1‘forward, inclined to the front’
  2. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500foreward1
  3. Englishearliest quotation c. 1590–1591forward1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English forward
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1590–1591, William Shakespeare, The Two Gentlemen of Verona: “The most forward bud / Is eaten by the…”.

Lineage

  1. Old Englishc. 450–1150foreweardWiktionary, English forward‘forward, inclined to the front’
  2. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500forewardWiktionary, English forward
  3. Englishearliest quotation c. 1590–1591forwardWiktionary, English forward. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1590–1591, William Shakespeare, The Two Gentlemen of Verona: “The most forward bud / Is eaten by the…”

Explore everything descended from foreweard →

No ads, ever. This is how the app stays alive.

Become a founding member, $29 onceWear this word, $32Support the app

Today it means

adj Situated toward or at the front of something.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “forward”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Old English foreweard / forward