behind
Americanpreposition
-
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?
-
hidden or unrevealed by.
Malice lay behind her smile.
-
at the controls of.
behind the wheel of a car.
adverb
-
at or toward the rear; rearward.
to lag behind.
-
in a place, state, or stage already passed.
-
in arrears; behindhand.
to be behind in one's rent.
-
slow, as a watch or clock.
more than 20 minutes behind.
-
as a cause or often latent feature of.
Behind their harassment lay the traditional fear of foreigners.
-
in a situation that exists afterward.
The victim left behind a large family.
-
Archaic. in reserve; to come.
Greater support is yet behind.
adjective
noun
preposition
-
in or to a position further back than; at the rear of; at the back of
-
in the past in relation to
I've got the exams behind me now
-
late according to; not keeping up with
running behind schedule
-
concerning the circumstances surrounding
the reasons behind his departure
-
backing or supporting
I'm right behind you in your application
adverb
-
in or to a position further back; following
-
remaining after someone's departure
he left it behind
-
in debt; in arrears
to fall behind with payments
adjective
noun
-
informal the buttocks
-
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 )
Usage
See back 1.
Synonym Usage
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.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of behind
First recorded before 900; Middle English behinde(n), Old English behindan; equivalent to be- + hind 1; for adverb suffix -an, cf. before
Explanation
When one thing is behind another, it's at the rear or the far side of it, possibly even hidden by it. Your shy dog might tend to stand behind you when you meet a friend on your walk. When the sun hides behind a cloud, the cloud is in front of it, and when there's fear lurking behind your cheerful smile, the grin is disguising, or covering, your anxiety. Behind can also mean "supporting," as when you're a hundred percent behind your sister's campaign for school president; or "lagging," as when you say: "Slow down! I'm way behind in this race!" Finally, behind is a gentle slang term for "buttocks."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
As I was in the process of leaving it all behind, I was going, “OK, yeah, whoo, glad I made it out of there!”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
One part of the plan means that most jailed offenders on fixed terms will leave jail after serving a third of their term behind bars, rather than at the halfway point.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
Hayden AI, the software manufacturer behind the tech, created an artificial intelligence network that has recorded all of the city’s bike lanes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
What happens if someone later becomes disabled, or leaves behind a spouse — or even a divorced spouse — who qualifies for survivor benefits?
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026
I glance at the family eating Indian tacos and then at the legendary grandparent behind the counter pretending not to watch us.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
"It is the first moment that separates our heads from our behinds."
From Science Daily ● Mar. 23, 2024
Research published Thursday in the journal Science suggests they feed their hatchlings a milk-like substance too, but from their behinds.
From New York Times ● Mar. 7, 2024
Owen took Green out of the Buick, cuffed his hands behinds his back and then seated him in the front passenger seat of a police cruiser, according to police records.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 3, 2023
If the AeroCollect works well, he won’t need to don masks and gloves and get permission to draw chickens’ blood and swab their behinds.
From Science Magazine ● Jan. 5, 2023
They bobbed their heads and shook their slack behinds and turned, one at a time: “ ’Bye, Annie.”
From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.