back and forth

back and forth

1. adjective In one direction and then another in an alternating fashion. During the party, I went back and forth to the kitchen to get drinks for the guests. The kids are outside throwing the baseball back and forth. The union and management are still going back and forth in the contract negotiation.
2. noun An argument or discussion in which two or more people alternate in sharing their perspectives. They're having a real back and forth up there—can you hear them yelling? I think we should have a little back and forth before we make a final decision.
See also: and, back, forth
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

back and forth

in one direction and then the other repeatedly; from one place to another repeatedly. We tossed the ball back and forth between us. The tiger paced back and forth in its cage.
See also: and, back, forth
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

back and forth

Also, backward(s) and forward(s). To and fro, moving in one direction and then the opposite and so making no progress in either. For example, The clock pendulum swung back and forth. The term is also used figuratively, as in The lawyers argued the point backwards and forwards for an entire week. [c. 1600]
See also: and, back, forth
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

ˌback and ˈforth

(also ˌbackwards and ˈforwards) in one direction and then in the opposite one, repeatedly: The rope swung back and forth from the branch. She travels backwards and forwards between the factory and head office.
See also: and, back, forth
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
See also:
  • do or die
  • do or die, to
  • back to back
  • back-to-back
  • appropriate for
  • bulletproof
  • man to man
  • man-to-man
  • ad-lib
  • in-between
References in periodicals archive
Immediately after melt oscillation, Scorim can move the two pistons back and forth in concert, creating compression and decompression effects in the cavity.
Melt oscillation molds better parts
Each month we spray a light silicone lubricant on the locking handle and work the handle back and Forth until it moves Freely.
Striking Stryker suggestions
Moreover, when volunteers hold their hands palm to palm, the vibrating device on either the right or left wrist tendon makes them perceive both hands as moving back and forth. Primary motor cortex on the right side of the brain regulates left-side movements, and that on the left side controls right-side movements.
Motion illusion yields a neural surprise. (Brain's Moving Experience)
In A la Motte, 1993, time-lapse photography records a delicate white moth eating a hole into a sheet of black knitting; in Parade, 1993, a cadre of silkworms troop back and forth across the screen in a kind of instinctive calligraphy.
Rosemarie Trockel
Brush back and forth, not side to side, to avoid damage.
Good launching thanks to PM
One version forms the dynein arms, whose motion whips 9+2 cilia back and forth. The second acts as a motor that helps transport cargo along microtubules.
Twirl Those Organs into Place
Light emitted by the PPV layer reflects back and forth between the two surfaces until a single wavelength emerges from one side of the device.
All-plastic lights for a lightweight glow
Whenever the floor moves, the computer sends signals that drive the movable mass back and forth to compensate for the vibration.
Calming bad vibes: from microscopes to skyscrapers, smart structures help control vibration
"Imagine a marble in a bowl, rolling back and forth," says Monroe.
Schrodinger's cat: two atoms in one?
To charge and discharge the battery lithium ions "rock" back and forth between the battery's two electrodes, says Dominique Guyomard of the University of Nantes, France.
Rocking ions improve lithium battery
When they injected some noise by introducing fluctuations into the electronic signals controlling the laser, they found that the laser's light direction would switch back and forth in time with an incoming, periodic signal normally too weak to influence the laser.
The signal value of noise: adding the right kind can amplify a weak signal
The switching back and forth introduces a lot of systematic errors that reduce the accuracy.
'Possible' and 'probable' alien planets