{"loaderData":{"0":null,"0-3":[{"type":"fetchPageData/fulfilled","payload":{"_id":"home-legacy","story":{"created_at":"2023-07-04T15:14:18.526Z","published_at":"2024-05-02T04:05:00.000Z","content":{"heroModule":[{"cta":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/november/","text":"Read more.","target":"_self"}],"article":{"name":"What Does the Name \"November\" Mean?","content":{"topicLabel":"Word origins"}},"imageUrl":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/featured/hero/what-does-the-name-november-mean-20251103.jpg","description":"Find out where November got its name — and why it's related to the word \"nine.\"","subjectLabel":"Today"}],"quizModule":[{"cta":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/learn/quizzes","text":"Go to all quizzes","target":"_self"}],"image":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/daily-quiz.png","articleLink":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/games/quizzes/spanish-words-through-history-a-cultural-quiz","text":"Take the full quiz.","target":"_self"}],"subjectLabel":"Quiz","wordpressSlug":"spanish-words-through-history-a-cultural-quiz","questionNumber":"5"}],"xotdModule":[],"gamesModule":[{"gamesList":[{"name":"Daily Crossword","created_at":"2023-07-04T15:24:23.318Z","published_at":"2024-02-07T05:05:00.000Z","id":336141299,"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/crossword/","text":"Daily Crossword","target":"_self"}],"image":{"id":10215805,"alt":"","name":"","focus":"","title":"","source":"","filename":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/daily-crossword.png","copyright":"","fieldtype":"asset","meta_data":{},"is_external_url":false},"subscriberLink":""},"slug":"daily-crossword","full_slug":"games/daily-crossword","sort_by_date":null,"position":0,"tag_list":[],"is_startpage":false,"parent_id":336140985,"meta_data":null,"group_id":"013f4974-3fad-4e2b-8aa2-c573ef31f263","first_published_at":"2023-07-04T15:32:55.972Z","release_id":null,"lang":"default","path":null,"alternates":[],"default_full_slug":null,"translated_slugs":null,"_stopResolving":true},{"name":"Hurdle","created_at":"2023-07-07T20:42:46.109Z","published_at":"2024-02-06T05:05:00.000Z","id":337835996,"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://play.dictionary.com/games/todays-hurdle","text":"Hurdle","target":"_self"}],"image":{"id":10215808,"alt":"","name":"","focus":"","title":"","source":"","filename":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/hurdle.png","copyright":"","fieldtype":"asset","meta_data":{},"is_external_url":false},"subscriberLink":"https://www.dictionary.com/games/hurdle"},"slug":"hurdle","full_slug":"games/hurdle","sort_by_date":null,"position":-30,"tag_list":[],"is_startpage":false,"parent_id":336140985,"meta_data":null,"group_id":"3342f4e9-9403-4609-a956-7cd5eab50dc9","first_published_at":"2023-07-10T17:24:55.648Z","release_id":null,"lang":"default","path":null,"alternates":[],"default_full_slug":null,"translated_slugs":null,"_stopResolving":true},{"name":"Word Puzzle","created_at":"2023-07-04T15:31:56.964Z","published_at":"2023-07-10T17:24:59.422Z","id":336150578,"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/games/word-puzzle","text":"Word Puzzle","target":"_self"}],"image":{"id":10215807,"alt":"","name":"","focus":"","title":"","source":"","filename":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/word-puzzle.png","copyright":"","fieldtype":"asset","meta_data":{},"is_external_url":false}},"slug":"word-puzzle","full_slug":"games/word-puzzle","sort_by_date":null,"position":-20,"tag_list":[],"is_startpage":false,"parent_id":336140985,"meta_data":null,"group_id":"71792320-7229-4ab6-8558-b3af16f5e557","first_published_at":"2023-07-04T15:32:43.933Z","release_id":null,"lang":"default","path":null,"alternates":[],"default_full_slug":null,"translated_slugs":null,"_stopResolving":true},{"name":"Word Wipe","created_at":"2023-07-04T15:28:02.623Z","published_at":"2024-02-06T05:05:00.000Z","id":336141320,"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://play.dictionary.com/games/word-wipe","text":"Word Wipe","target":"_self"}],"image":{"id":10215806,"alt":"","name":"","focus":"","title":"","source":"","filename":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/word-wipe.png","copyright":"","fieldtype":"asset","meta_data":{},"is_external_url":false},"subscriberLink":"https://www.dictionary.com/games/word-wipe"},"slug":"word-wipe","full_slug":"games/word-wipe","sort_by_date":null,"position":-10,"tag_list":[],"is_startpage":false,"parent_id":336140985,"meta_data":null,"group_id":"3789fc63-90b3-4407-99f4-fa263d1a3e39","first_published_at":"2023-07-04T15:32:50.947Z","release_id":null,"lang":"default","path":null,"alternates":[],"default_full_slug":null,"translated_slugs":null,"_stopResolving":true}],"description":"Calling all cruciverbalists! Sharpen your mind with crosswords and word games, or take a brain break with your favorite classic games.","subjectLabel":"Games"}],"commonModule":[],"ribbonModule":[],"trendingModule":[{"articles":[{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/10-interesting-words-from-taylor-swifts-showgirl-album/","text":"10 Interesting Words from Taylor Swift's \"Showgirl\" Album"}]}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/whomever-vs-whoever/","text":"\"Whomever\" vs. \"Whoever\": What's the Difference?"}]}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/words-for-scorpios/","text":"These Are Some of the Best Words to Describe Scorpios"}]}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/genericized-trademarks/","text":"40 Genericized Trademarks You Probably Say Every Day"}]}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/from-witch-to-ghoul-heres-how-these-spooky-figures-got-their-names/","text":"From \"Witch\" to \"Ghoul,\" Here's How These Spooky Figures Got Their Names"}]}}],"subjectLabel":"Trending"}],"newsletterModule":[{"title":"Salutations, logophile!","imageUrl":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/newsletter.png","description":"Sign up to get everything a word lover could want: word origins, fun facts, and the latest language trends.","subjectLabel":"Newsletter"}],"largeRibbonModule":[],"recirculationModule":[{"articles":[{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.thesaurus.com/e/grammar/good-vs-well/","text":"Good vs. Well: The Grammatical Difference"}],"topicLabel":"Grammar"}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/time-zone-terminology/","text":"It's Time to Learn Some Time Zone Terminology"}],"topicLabel":"Fall back ⏰"}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/medical-term-for-fainting/","text":"What Is the Medical Term for Fainting?"}],"topicLabel":"Medicine"}}],"subjectLabel":"Featured"}]},"slug":"shared-homepage","full_slug":"homepages/shared-homepage","sort_by_date":null,"position":0,"tag_list":[],"is_startpage":false,"parent_id":336140983,"meta_data":null,"group_id":"c7ed375b-9129-448c-aeec-9f52e3fef270","first_published_at":"2023-07-04T18:23:43.845Z","release_id":null,"lang":"default","path":null,"alternates":[],"default_full_slug":null,"translated_slugs":null}},"meta":{"requestId":"FE1W52uOqONFvn9dpnFaV","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"luna/fetchExampleSentences/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"nlp":[{"id":"6745236-24","sentence":"I was taken aback, because I honestly wasn’t ready to have any kind of conversation about it.","source":{"sourceName":"Salon","publicationDate":"2025-11-02T04:00:00.000Z","publication_date":"2025-11-02T04:00:00.000Z","url":"https://www.salon.com/2025/11/02/parrot-kindergarten-ellie-grief/","abbreviation":"nlp","author":"Hanh Nguyen","title":"Polly want a grief counselor?"},"offsets":[12,17]},{"id":"6744673-1","sentence":"The cathedral archivist admits to being taken aback by the package, but alongside the skull was a letter of explanation.","source":{"sourceName":"BBC","publicationDate":"2025-10-31T04:00:00.000Z","publication_date":"2025-10-31T04:00:00.000Z","url":"https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2317drzm04o","abbreviation":"nlp","title":"Austrian skull: 60 years after tourist stole it from a cathedral, he sent it back"},"offsets":[46,51]},{"id":"6739425-15","sentence":"Colleagues, friends and family, they found, could be quite taken aback by their new passion.","source":{"sourceName":"BBC","publicationDate":"2025-10-17T04:00:00.000Z","publication_date":"2025-10-17T04:00:00.000Z","url":"https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gw7009342o","abbreviation":"nlp","title":"Grand Sumo Tournament London: Ancient rituals and online fans"},"offsets":[65,70]},{"id":"6736059-7","sentence":"As wine service has become more egalitarian and welcoming in the past few decades, I was truly taken aback to meet such a somm.","source":{"sourceName":"The Wall Street Journal","publicationDate":"2025-10-09T04:00:00.000Z","publication_date":"2025-10-09T04:00:00.000Z","url":"https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/food-cooking/snooty-sommeliers-wine-you-want-in-a-restaurant-f561fd91","abbreviation":"nlp","author":"Lettie Teague","title":"Tired of Snooty Sommeliers? How to Get the Wine You Actually Want in a Restaurant"},"offsets":[101,106]},{"id":"6735318-31","sentence":"\"It's just so fast and so aggressive, so a lot of people are taken aback,\" he said.","source":{"sourceName":"BBC","publicationDate":"2025-10-09T04:00:00.000Z","publication_date":"2025-10-09T04:00:00.000Z","url":"https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn43439n4xxo","abbreviation":"nlp","title":"Grimsby man owed £6k council tax after £100 bill spiralled"},"offsets":[67,72]}],"tdb":[],"gbg":[]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"aback"},"requestId":"QSKp4dXw_J5EO1Cm702P6","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"dcomWeb/fetchThesaurusRelatedEntries/fulfilled","payload":{"relatedEntries":[{"headword":"back","partOfSpeech":"adjective","shortDefinition":"end","slug":"back","synonyms":[{"headword":"aback","slug":"aback"},{"headword":"abaft","slug":"abaft"},{"headword":"aft","slug":"aft"},{"headword":"after","slug":"after"},{"headword":"astern","slug":"astern"},{"headword":"back of","slug":"back-of"},{"headword":"backward","slug":"backward"},{"headword":"behind","slug":"behind"},{"headword":"final","slug":"final"},{"headword":"following","slug":"following"},{"headword":"hind","slug":"hind"},{"headword":"hindmost","slug":"hindmost"},{"headword":"in the wake of","slug":"in-the-wake-of"},{"headword":"posterior","slug":"posterior"},{"headword":"rear","slug":"rear"},{"headword":"rearmost","slug":"rearmost"},{"headword":"rearward","slug":"rearward"},{"headword":"tail","slug":"tail"}]},{"headword":"hind","partOfSpeech":"adjective","shortDefinition":"back","slug":"hind","synonyms":[{"headword":"aback","slug":"aback"},{"headword":"abaft","slug":"abaft"},{"headword":"aft","slug":"aft"},{"headword":"after","slug":"after"},{"headword":"astern","slug":"astern"},{"headword":"back of","slug":"back-of"},{"headword":"backward","slug":"backward"},{"headword":"behind","slug":"behind"},{"headword":"final","slug":"final"},{"headword":"following","slug":"following"},{"headword":"hindmost","slug":"hindmost"},{"headword":"in the wake of","slug":"in-the-wake-of"},{"headword":"posterior","slug":"posterior"},{"headword":"postern","slug":"postern"},{"headword":"rear","slug":"rear"},{"headword":"rearmost","slug":"rearmost"},{"headword":"rearward","slug":"rearward"},{"headword":"tail","slug":"tail"}]},{"headword":"short","partOfSpeech":"adverb","shortDefinition":"abruptly","slug":"short","synonyms":[{"headword":"aback","slug":"aback"},{"headword":"by surprise","slug":"by-surprise"},{"headword":"forthwith","slug":"forthwith"},{"headword":"sudden","slug":"sudden"},{"headword":"suddenly","slug":"suddenly"},{"headword":"unanticipatedly","slug":"unanticipatedly"},{"headword":"unaware","slug":"unaware"},{"headword":"unawares","slug":"unawares"},{"headword":"unexpectedly","slug":"unexpectedly"},{"headword":"without delay","slug":"without-delay"},{"headword":"without hesitation","slug":"without-hesitation"},{"headword":"without warning","slug":"without-warning"}]},{"headword":"suddenly","partOfSpeech":"adverb","shortDefinition":"unexpectedly","slug":"suddenly","synonyms":[{"headword":"aback","slug":"aback"},{"headword":"abruptly","slug":"abruptly"},{"headword":"all at once","slug":"all-at-once"},{"headword":"all of a sudden","slug":"all-of-a-sudden"},{"headword":"asudden","slug":"asudden"},{"headword":"forthwith","slug":"forthwith"},{"headword":"on spur of moment","slug":"on-spur-of-moment"},{"headword":"quickly","slug":"quickly"},{"headword":"short","slug":"short"},{"headword":"sudden","slug":"sudden"},{"headword":"swiftly","slug":"swiftly"},{"headword":"unanticipatedly","slug":"unanticipatedly"},{"headword":"unaware","slug":"unaware"},{"headword":"unawares","slug":"unawares"},{"headword":"without warning","slug":"without-warning"}]},{"headword":"unawares","partOfSpeech":"adverb","shortDefinition":"without warning; suddenly","slug":"unawares","synonyms":[{"headword":"aback","slug":"aback"},{"headword":"abruptly","slug":"abruptly"},{"headword":"accidentally","slug":"accidentally"},{"headword":"by accident","slug":"by-accident"},{"headword":"by mistake","slug":"by-mistake"},{"headword":"by surprise","slug":"by-surprise"},{"headword":"carelessly","slug":"carelessly"},{"headword":"ignorantly","slug":"ignorantly"},{"headword":"inadvertently","slug":"inadvertently"},{"headword":"mistakenly","slug":"mistakenly"},{"headword":"off guard"},{"headword":"short","slug":"short"},{"headword":"sudden","slug":"sudden"},{"headword":"surprisingly","slug":"surprisingly"},{"headword":"unconsciously","slug":"unconsciously"},{"headword":"unexpectedly","slug":"unexpectedly"},{"headword":"unintentionally","slug":"unintentionally"},{"headword":"unknowingly","slug":"unknowingly"},{"headword":"unprepared","slug":"unprepared"},{"headword":"unready","slug":"unready"},{"headword":"unwittingly","slug":"unwittingly"}]}],"slug":"aback"},"meta":{"arg":"aback","requestId":"Hvg5ISacSBC051V7tvNBJ","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"dcomWeb/fetchThesaurusEntry/fulfilled","payload":[{"entries":[{"createDate":"2021-05-09T14:48:55Z","headword":{"normalizedForm":"aback","standardForm":"aback"},"id":"6097f6570000000324008ec4","lang":"en","modifyDate":"2021-05-09T14:48:55Z","ngrams":{"allLetters":true,"forward":"aback","groups":["a","aa","b","c","k"],"numLetters":5,"reverse":"kcaba","subwordTokens":["aback","back","ack","ck","k"]},"normalizedLetter":"a","ordinal":1,"partOfSpeechBlocks":[{"definitions":[{"id":"6097f6570000000324008ec9","ordinal":1,"shortText":"taken unawares","source":"random-house","synonyms":[{"entry":{"headword":"surprised","id":"6097f8240000000332005e9c","slug":"surprised"},"similarity":100},{"entry":{"headword":"confused","id":"6097fb490000000296006c04","slug":"confused"},"similarity":10},{"entry":{"headword":"thrown off","id":"6097f8410000000141003819","slug":"thrown-off"},"similarity":10},{"entry":{"headword":"thrown off guard","id":"6097f8410000000141003841","slug":"thrown-off-guard"},"similarity":10}]}],"id":"6097f657bb1f88f7c11cd3c0","ordinal":1,"partOfSpeech":"adverb"}],"pronunciationSets":[{"id":"556806bc00000002410000cb","lang":"en","ordinal":1,"pronunciations":[{"audio":{"flac":"A00/A0003800/A0003800.flac","mpeg":"A00/A0003800/A0003800.mp3","ogg":"A00/A0003800/A0003800.ogg","wav":"A00/A0003800/A0003800.wav"},"id":"556806bc00000002410000cc","ipa":{"text":"əˈbæk"},"phonetic":{"boldIndices":[3,4,5],"html":"uh-bak","italicIndices":[0,1],"text":"uh-bak"}}],"region":"us"}],"slug":"aback","source":"random-house","type":"tcom"}],"type":"tcom"}],"meta":{"arg":"aback","requestId":"NulsMNSITw7uakHu6nswA","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"dcomWeb/fetchDictionaryEntry/fulfilled","payload":[{"entries":[{"createDate":"2015-05-29T06:27:08Z","headword":{"normalizedForm":"aback","standardForm":"aback","syllabicForm":"a·back"},"id":"556806bc00000002410000c7","lang":"en","modifyDate":"2015-05-29T06:27:08Z","ngrams":{"allLetters":true,"forward":"aback","groups":["a","aa","b","c","k"],"numLetters":5,"reverse":"kcaba","subwordTokens":["aback","back","ack","ck","k"]},"normalizedLetter":"a","notes":[{"definitions":[{"examples":[{"sentence":"I was taken aback by his harsh criticism."}],"id":"556806bc00000002410000ed","label":"taken aback,","ordinal":1,"source":"random-house","text":"surprised and disconcerted."}],"source":"dcom","type":"idiom"}],"ordinal":1,"origin":{"id":"556806bc00000002410000f4","source":"dcom","text":"First recorded before 1000; Middle English abak, Old English on bæc “to the rear”; a- ¹, on, back ¹","type":"origin"},"partOfSpeechBlocks":[{"definitions":[{"id":"556806bc00000002410000d5","ordinal":1,"source":"random-house","text":"toward the back."},{"id":"556806bc00000002410000d7","label":"Nautical.","ordinal":2,"source":"random-house","tags":[{"tag":"Nautical","type":"category"},{"tag":"Naval","type":"category"}],"text":"so that the wind presses against the forward side of the sail or sails."}],"id":"556806bc00000002410000d2","ordinal":1,"partOfSpeech":"adverb"},{"definitions":[{"id":"556806bc00000002410000e3","ordinal":1,"source":"random-house","tags":[{"tag":"Nautical","type":"category"},{"tag":"Naval","type":"category"}],"text":"(of a sail) positioned so that the wind presses against the forward side."},{"id":"556806bc00000002410000e8","ordinal":2,"source":"random-house","tags":[{"tag":"Nautical","type":"category"}],"text":"(of a yard) positioned so that its sail is laid aback."}],"id":"556806bc00000002410000de","label":"Nautical.","ordinal":2,"partOfSpeech":"adjective","tags":[{"tag":"Nautical","type":"subject-category"}]}],"pronunciationSets":[{"id":"556806bc00000002410000cb","lang":"en","ordinal":1,"pronunciations":[{"audio":{"flac":"A00/A0003800/A0003800.flac","mpeg":"A00/A0003800/A0003800.mp3","ogg":"A00/A0003800/A0003800.ogg","wav":"A00/A0003800/A0003800.wav"},"id":"556806bc00000002410000cc","ipa":{"text":"əˈbæk"},"phonetic":{"boldIndices":[3,4,5],"html":"uh-bak","italicIndices":[0,1],"text":"uh-bak"}}],"region":"us"}],"slug":"aback","source":"dcom","type":"dcom"}],"type":"dcom"},{"entries":[{"createDate":"2012-01-01T00:00:00Z","headword":{"normalizedForm":"aback","standardForm":"aback"},"id":"4effa20069646d2100010020","lang":"en","modifyDate":"2012-01-01T00:00:00Z","ngrams":{"allLetters":true,"forward":"aback","groups":["a","aa","b","c","k"],"numLetters":5,"reverse":"kcaba","subwordTokens":["aback","back","ack","ck","k"]},"normalizedLetter":"a","ordinal":1,"partOfSpeechBlocks":[{"definitions":[{"id":"4effa20080539d285834fb10","ordinal":1,"source":"american-heritage","text":"see take aback."}],"id":"4effa20080539d285834fb11","ordinal":1}],"slug":"aback","source":"american-heritage","type":"idiom"}],"type":"idiom"},{"entries":[{"createDate":"2010-11-10T04:19:19Z","headword":{"normalizedForm":"aback","standardForm":"aback"},"id":"4cda1d478ede3eeca0f46693","lang":"en","modifyDate":"2010-11-10T04:19:19Z","ngrams":{"allLetters":true,"forward":"aback","groups":["a","aa","b","c","k"],"numLetters":5,"reverse":"kcaba","subwordTokens":["aback","back","ack","ck","k"]},"normalizedLetter":"a","ordinal":1,"origin":{"source":"collins","text":"Old English on bæc to the back","type":"etymology"},"partOfSpeechBlocks":[{"definitions":[{"id":"4c207ca8895e6250c4c98025","ordinal":1},{"id":"4ceb748a39612c827f7abcd9","ordinal":1,"subOrdinal":1,"tags":[{"tag":"General:General_Language:General_Language_Term","type":"subject-field"}],"text":"startled or disconcerted"},{"id":"4c24bf014640c3468bd7111a","ordinal":1,"subOrdinal":2,"tags":[{"tag":"Science_and_Technology:Transport:Nautical_Terms","type":"subject-field"}],"text":"nautical (of a vessel or sail) having the wind against the forward side so as to prevent forward motion"},{"id":"4ca4f7595fc085b74a941bba","label":"rare","ordinal":2,"tags":[{"tag":"General:General_Language:General_Language_Term","type":"subject-field"}],"text":"towards the back; backwards"}],"ordinal":1,"partOfSpeech":"adverb"}],"pronunciationSets":[{"ordinal":1,"pronunciations":[{"ipa":{"text":"əˈbæk"}}]}],"slug":"aback","source":"collins","type":"british"}],"type":"british"}],"meta":{"arg":"aback","requestId":"BTqCXHY-ZUw6I7puMqonk","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchSpellSuggestions/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"lunaWithSlug":[{"displayForm":"aback","slug":"aback"},{"displayForm":"abac","slug":"abac"},{"displayForm":"abaca","slug":"abaca"},{"displayForm":"alack","slug":"alack"},{"displayForm":"back","slug":"back"},{"displayForm":"abacus","slug":"abacus"},{"displayForm":"arc-back","slug":"arc-back"},{"displayForm":"bareback","slug":"bareback"},{"displayForm":"Black","slug":"black"},{"displayForm":"aba","slug":"aba"},{"displayForm":"abaft","slug":"abaft"}],"tunaWithSlug":[{"displayForm":"aback","slug":"aback"},{"displayForm":"abaca","slug":"abaca"},{"displayForm":"back","slug":"back"},{"displayForm":"abacus","slug":"abacus"},{"displayForm":"drawback","slug":"drawback"},{"displayForm":"fallback","slug":"fallback"},{"displayForm":"far back","slug":"far-back"},{"displayForm":"abaft","slug":"abaft"},{"displayForm":"abase","slug":"abase"},{"displayForm":"abash","slug":"abash"},{"displayForm":"abate","slug":"abate"}]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"aback"},"requestId":"89iXRbhtr_28aQciV098H","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}}]},"actionData":null,"errors":null}

aback

Example Sentences

Related Words