BÆC

g. bæces; pl. nom. acc. bacu, bæc; g. baca; d. bacum; n. A BACK; dorsum, tergum [dorsum is opposed to venter, especially in animals; and tergum to frons, inimicorum meorum dedisti mihi dorsum, Ps. Th. 17, 38. Fýnd míne ðú sealdest me on bæc vel hricc inimicos meos dedisti mihi dorsum, Ps. Spl. 17, 42; myn enemys thou ȝeue to me bac, Wyc. 17, 41. Ðá wendon hí me heora bæc to then turned they their backs to me, Bt. 2; Fox 4, 13. Hí me towendon heora bacu they turned their backs on me, Bt. Met. Fox 2, 29; Met. 2, 15. Ǽr hí bacum tobreden before they turn their backs to each other, Exon. 92 a; Th. 345, 20; Gn. Ex. 192. ¶ On bæc retro, Jn. Bos. 6, 66: and under bæc retrorsum, Ps. Spl. 43, 12: at his back, behind, backward, to have a clean back, to be free from deceit, L. A. G. 5; Th. i. 156, 6. Gang on bæc, Mt. Bos. 4, 10. Gá on bæc go behind or away; vade retro, Mk. Bos. 8, 33. [Orm. bac, bacch: Chauc. back: O. Sax. bak, n: N. Frs. beck, n: O. Frs. bek, n: O. Ger. pacho, bacho, m: O. Nrs. bak, n: Scot. back a body of followers. Is it allied to the root in bígan to bow, as the N. Ger. buckel dorsum is to biegen?] DER. ofer-bæc, on-, under-. -bæc,bæc