Standard Lemma guide

posterior

adj · noun · 9 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /pɒsˈtɪə.ɹi.ə/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • General-American: /poʊˈstɪɹ.i.ɚ/
  • General-American: /pɑˈstɪɹ.i.ɚ/
  • Texas: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Colorado Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • dialectal: /pɑˈstɪɹ.i.ɚ/ of Canada
  • Canada, dialectal: /pɒsˈtɪɹ.i.ɚ/ of the US
  • Australian: /pɔsˈtɪə.ɹi.ə/
  • New-Zealand: /pɒsˈtiːə.ɹi.ə/
  • New-Zealand: [pɔ̟sˈtiːə.ɹi.ə]
  • New-Zealand: /pɒsˈtiə.ɹi.ə/
  • New-Zealand: [pɔ̟sˈtiə.ɹi.ə]
  • rhymes with -ɪəɹiə(ɹ)
  • CMU ARPABET: P AO2 S T IH1 R Y ER0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Nearer the rear or hind end; nearer the caudal end of the body in quadrupeds or the dorsal end in bipeds.

Relating to or denoting presentation of a fetus in which the rear or caudal end is nearest the cervix and emerges first at birth.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: anatomy, medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: back, hinder, rear

Antonyms: anterior

2

adj

Meaning 2

Nearer the rear or hind end; nearer the caudal end of the body in quadrupeds or the dorsal end in bipeds.

Next to, or facing the main stem or axis.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: anatomy, biology, botany, medicine, natural-sciences, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: back, hinder, rear

Antonyms: anterior

3

adj

Meaning 3

Following in order or in time.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: formal

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: later

Antonyms: prior

4

noun

Meaning 4

The posterior portions of the human body; especially, the buttocks.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: euphemistic, humorous, sometimes

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: 'tocks, arse, arse cheeks, ass, ass cheeks, back, backside, batty, behind, blessed assurance, booty, botty, bottom, bum, bum cheeks, buns, butt, butt cheeks, buttocks, caboose, cheeks, derriere, dicky, fanny, fourth point of contact, gluteus maximus, glutes, gooseberry-grinder, gyatt, heinie, hiney, hinderlin, hurdies, jacksie, keester, keister, moon, moneymaker, nates, nether cheeks, patootie, peach, posterior, postern, rear, rear end, rump, seat, sit upon, tail, toches, tush, tushie

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

The probability that a hypothesis is true (calculated by Bayes' theorem).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: mathematics, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: posterior probability

Antonyms: prior, prior probability

6

adjective

Meaning 6

located at or near or behind a part or near the end of a structure

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: anterior

7

adjective satellite

Meaning 7

coming at a subsequent time or stage

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • without ulterior argument
  • the mood posterior to

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: later(a), ulterior

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

a tooth situated at the back of the mouth

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: back tooth

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: tooth

9

noun

Meaning 9

the fleshy part of the human body that you sit on

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • he deserves a good kick in the butt
  • are you going to sit on your fanny and do nothing?

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: buttocks, nates, arse, butt, backside, bum, buns, can, fundament, hindquarters, hind end, keister, prat, rear, rear end, rump, stern, seat, tail, tail end, tooshie, tush, bottom, behind, derriere, fanny, ass

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: body part

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *pós Proto-Indo-European *-ti Proto-Indo-European *pósti Proto-Italic *posti Proto-Indo-European *-teros Proto-Italic *-teros Proto-Italic *posteros Latin posterus Latin posteriorbor. English posterior Borrowed from Latin posterior (“that comes or follows after; later, latter”).

Across languages

Translations

86 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: خَلْفِيّ (ḵalfiyy) — located towards the rear
  • Belarusian: за́дні (zádni) — located towards the rear
  • Belarusian: ты́льны (týlʹny) — located towards the rear
  • Bulgarian: за́ден (záden) — located towards the rear
  • Catalan: posterior — located towards the rear
  • Chinese Mandarin: 後面的 /后面的 (hòumiàn de) — located towards the rear
  • Chinese Mandarin: 尾部的 (wěibù de) — located towards the rear
  • Czech: zadní — located towards the rear
  • Dutch: achteraangelegen — located towards the rear
  • Dutch: achterkant — located towards the rear
  • Dutch: rugzijde — located towards the rear
  • Finnish: perä- — located towards the rear
  • Finnish: perässä oleva — located towards the rear
  • Finnish: perällä oleva — located towards the rear
  • Finnish: perempi — located towards the rear
  • French: postérieur — located towards the rear
  • German: hinterer — located towards the rear
  • German: Rück- — located towards the rear
  • Greek: οπίσθιος (opísthios) — located towards the rear
  • Hindi: पीछे (pīche) — located towards the rear
  • Italian: posteriore — located towards the rear
  • Japanese: 後の (ushiro no) — located towards the rear
  • Japanese: 後方の (kōhō no) — located towards the rear
  • Korean: 후부의 (hubuui) — located towards the rear
  • Korean: 뒤의 (dwiui) — located towards the rear
  • Macedonian: заден (zaden) — located towards the rear
  • Polish: tylny — located towards the rear
  • Polish: zadni — located towards the rear
  • Portuguese: posterior — located towards the rear
  • Romanian: posterior — located towards the rear
  • Russian: за́дний (zádnij) — located towards the rear
  • Russian: ты́льный (týlʹnyj) — located towards the rear
  • Russian: хвостово́й (xvostovój) — located towards the rear
  • Serbo-Croatian: за̏дњӣ — located towards the rear
  • Serbo-Croatian: zȁdnjī — located towards the rear
  • Slovak: zadný — located towards the rear
  • Slovene: zadnji — located towards the rear
  • Spanish: trasero — located towards the rear
  • Spanish: posterior — located towards the rear
  • Tagalog: hulihan — located towards the rear
  • Ukrainian: за́дній (zádnij) — located towards the rear
  • Ukrainian: ти́льний (týlʹnyj) — located towards the rear
  • Bulgarian: по-къ́сен (po-kǎ́sen) — following in order or time
  • Bulgarian: сле́дващ (slédvašt) — following in order or time
  • Catalan: posterior — following in order or time
  • Dutch: later — following in order or time
  • Dutch: posterieur — following in order or time
  • Esperanto: posta — following in order or time
  • Finnish: jäljempi — following in order or time
  • Finnish: jälkikäteinen — following in order or time
  • French: postérieur — following in order or time
  • German: später — following in order or time
  • Greek: μεταγενέστερος (metagenésteros) — following in order or time
  • Greek: ύστερος (ýsteros) — following in order or time
  • Italian: posteriore — following in order or time
  • Japanese: 後の (ato no) — following in order or time
  • Japanese: 劣後する (retsugo suru) — following in order or time
  • Japanese: 後れる (okureru) — following in order or time
  • Occitan: posterior — following in order or time
  • Portuguese: posterior — following in order or time
  • Romanian: posterior — following in order or time
  • Romanian: ulterior — following in order or time
  • Russian: после́дующий (poslédujuščij) — following in order or time
  • Russian: поздне́йший (pozdnéjšij) — following in order or time
  • Spanish: posterior — following in order or time
  • Bulgarian: задник (zadnik) — buttocks
  • Czech: pozadí — buttocks
  • Dutch: Achterste — buttocks
  • Dutch: achterwerk — buttocks
  • Esperanto: postaĵo — buttocks
  • Finnish: peräpää — buttocks
  • French: derrière — buttocks
  • German: Hintern — buttocks
  • Greek: πισινός (pisinós) — buttocks
  • Hindi: नितंब (nitamb) — buttocks
  • Hungarian: far — buttocks
  • Māori: tou — buttocks
  • Māori: miki — buttocks
  • Māori: kumu — buttocks
  • Māori: tāreperepe — buttocks
  • Māori: papaihore — buttocks
  • Māori: remu — buttocks
  • Romanian: fund — buttocks
  • Serbo-Croatian: стра̏жњица — buttocks
  • Serbo-Croatian: strȁžnjica — buttocks
  • Spanish: trasero — buttocks
Real reading context

posterior in complete knowledge articles