back to front

English

Adverb

back to front

1. Turned so that the back is now at the front; the wrong way around.

   I was in such a hurry that I put my underpants on back to front.

   (figuratively, by extension) Of an order or cause of events, misunderstood or misinterpreted.

   (figuratively, by extension) Of a perspective, reversed or inverted.

Synonyms

• backwards

Derived terms

• know back to front

Translations

turned so that the back is now at the front

French: sens devant derrière (fr), à l'envers (fr) Polish: tył na przód Russian: за́дом наперёд (zádom naperjód) Scottish Gaelic: cùlaibh air a' bheulaibh Spanish: al revés, prepósteramente Swedish: bak och fram (sv) Ukrainian: за́дом напере́д (zádom naperéd)

Adjective

back to front

1. Reversed, with the back now at the front.

   The classic VW Beetle is a back to front car, with the engine at the rear.

Translations

reversed

Azerbaijani: tərs (az) Danish: bagvendt, omvendt Icelandic: öfugur Irish: droim ar ais Norwegian: Bokmål: bak fram Nynorsk: bak fram Scottish Gaelic: cùlaibh air a’ bheulaibh Spanish: al revés, prepóstero (es) Swedish: bak och fram (sv), bakvänt (sv) Welsh: tu ôl ymlaen

See also

• inside out
• upside down

Anagrams

• front to back