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aback
[uh-bak]
adverb
toward the back.
Nautical.so that the wind presses against the forward side of the sail or sails.
adjective
(of a sail) positioned so that the wind presses against the forward side.
(of a yard) positioned so that its sail is laid aback.
aback
/ əˈæ /
adverb
startled or disconcerted
nautical (of a vessel or sail) having the wind against the forward side so as to prevent forward motion
raretowards the back; backwards
Word History and Origins
Word History and Origins
Origin of aback1
Idioms and Phrases
taken aback, surprised and disconcerted.
I was taken aback by his harsh criticism.
Example Sentences
"The prime minister was taken aback. She decided to snub these moves and hasten the passage of the amendment bill in the parliament," writes Prof Raghavan.
“I’ve been taken aback by the problems that exist and how little has been done.”
But among those who were taken aback by the announcement was Lt.
"The response was just so warm. I was quite taken aback by it," says Archer.
Sir David remembers his first scuba dive on the Great Barrier Reef way back in 1957: "I was so taken aback by the spectacle before me I forgot – momentarily – to breathe."
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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.
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