fromward
English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Middle English fromward, framward, from Old English framweard (“about to depart, departing, doomed to die; with his back turned”, adjective) and framweardes (“away from”, adverb), equivalent to from + -ward. Compare froward.
Adjective
fromward (comparative more fromward, superlative most fromward)
- Turned away; averse.
- (now dialect, Southern England, Midlands, West Country) Leaning or listing away from; distant from; on the right-hand side; on the opposite side.
Usage notes
Traditionally used in ploughing (or similarly with harvest-field teams) in which the driver walks on the left-hand side; hence the right-hand side being linked with the off-hand or opposite side.
Adverb
fromward (comparative more fromward, superlative most fromward)
- (now dialect, Southern England, Midlands, West Country) Forth; forward.
Noun
fromward (plural fromwards)
- (now dialect, Southern England, Midlands, West Country) A cleaving tool; an iron instrument with a blade set at right angles on a short handle, used for splitting laths or rails.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Derived terms
References
- Wright, Joseph (1900) The English Dialect Dictionary, volume 2, Oxford: Oxford University Press, page 505
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