a (archaic) Towards the back or rear; backwards. (defdate|First attested prior to 1150.)(reference-book | last =| first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | editor =Brown, Lesley | others = | title = The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary | origdate = | origyear = 1933| origmonth = | url = | format = | accessdate = | accessyear = | accessmonth = | edition = 5th | date = | year =2003| month = | publisher =Oxford University Press | location =Oxford, UK | language = | id = | doi = | isbn =978-0-19-860575-7 | lccn = | ol = | pages =2| chapter = | chapterurl = | quote =)
a (nautical) Backward against the mast; said of the sails when pressed by the wind from the "wrong" (forward) side, or of a ship when its sails are set that way. (defdate|First attested in the late 17th century.)