rear

rear
{{11}}rear (n.) "hindmost part," c.1600, abstracted from rerewarde "rear guard" (c.1300), from Anglo-Fr. rerewarde, O.Fr. rieregarde, from O.Fr. riere (from L. retro "back, behind") + O.Fr. garde (see GUARD (Cf. guard)). Or the word may be an aphetic form of arrear (see ARREARS (Cf. arrears)). Military sense of "hindmost part" of an army or fleet is recorded from c.1600. As a euphemism for "buttocks" it is attested from 1796 (rear end in this sense recorded from 1937). Rear admiral is first attested 1580s, apparently so called from ranking "behind" an admiral proper. Rear-view (mirror) is recorded from 1926.
{{12}}rear (v.) O.E. ræran "to raise, build up, set on end," from P.Gmc. *raizijanau "to raise," causative of *risanan "to rise" (see RAISE (Cf. raise)). Meaning "bring into being, bring up" (as a child) is recorded from early 15c.; that of "raise up on the hind legs" is first recorded late 14c. Related: Reared; rearing.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • Rear — Rear, a. Being behind, or in the hindmost part; hindmost; as, the rear rank of a company. [1913 Webster] {Rear admiral}, an officer in the navy, next in rank below a vice admiral and above a commodore. See {Admiral}. {Rear front} (Mil.), the rear …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Rear — Rear, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Reared} (r[=e]rd); p. pr. & vb. n. {Rearing}.] [AS. r[=ae]ran to raise, rear, elevate, for r[=ae]san, causative of r[=i]san to rise. See {Rise}, and cf. {Raise}.] 1. To raise; to lift up; to cause to rise, become erect …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • rear — rear1 [rir] n. [prob. back form. < REAR(WARD), REAR (GUARD)] 1. the back or hind part of something 2. the place or position behind or at the back [at the rear of the house] 3. the part of a military or naval force farthest from the enemy ☆ 4 …   English World dictionary

  • rear — [adj] back, end aft, after, astern, backward, behind, dorsal, following, hind, hinder, hindermost, hindmost, last, mizzen, posterior, postern, rearmost, rearward, retral, reverse, stern, tail; concept 583 Ant. beginning, front rear [n] back or… …   New thesaurus

  • rear — Ⅰ. rear [1] ► NOUN 1) the back or hindmost part of something. 2) (also rear end) informal a person s buttocks. ► ADJECTIVE ▪ at the back. ● bring up the rear Cf. ↑ …   English terms dictionary

  • rear- — comb. form, partly of OF. or AF. origin, as in rear ward, guard, rearsupper (and hence by analogy in rear admiral, feast, freight), partly ad. F. arrière , as in rear vassal, vault, and partly (from c 1600) an attributive use of rear n …   Useful english dictionary

  • Rear — (r[=e]r), v. t. To place in the rear; to secure the rear of. [R.] [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Rear — Rear, n. [OF. riere behind, backward, fr. L. retro. Cf. {Arrear}.] 1. The back or hindmost part; that which is behind, or last in order; opposed to {front}. [1913 Webster] Nipped with the lagging rear of winter s frost. Milton. [1913 Webster] 2.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Rear — may be used as a noun and a verb and has several meanings: * Rear (military) the area of a battlefield behind the front line *Animals: **In stockbreeding, to breed and raise **Rear (horse), when a horse lifts its front legs off the ground *Rear… …   Wikipedia

  • rear up — ˈrear up [intransitive] [present tense I/you/we/they rear up he/she/it rears up present participle rearing up past tense reared up past part …   Useful english dictionary

  • Rear — (r[=e]r), adv. Early; soon. [Prov. Eng.] [1913 Webster] Then why does Cuddy leave his cot so rear? Gay. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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