arselong

A1R1S1E1L1O1N1G2

adverb

Backwards; on one's arse.

Opposite
headlong
OriginMiddle English *arsling ← Old English earsling →
Scrabble 9
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Meanings

adverbarselong (not comparable)

alternative arseling · alternative arselings

  1. UKdialectalnot comparableBackwards; on one's arse.

    Heave they did, all unopposed, and tumbled arselong when the bar came about. Even as they rolled and cursed, the whistling petered; [...]

    1981, John Barth, Giles goat-boy

    Antonyms: headlong

Synonyms & antonyms

adverbBackwards; on one's arse.

Opposite
headlong

Origin

  1. Old Englishearsling“backwards, on the back”
  2. Middle English*arsling
  3. Englisharselong

Alteration (after headlong) of arseling, from Middle English *arsling, from Old English earsling (“backwards, on the back”), equivalent to arse + -ling. Cognate with Dutch aarzeling, aarzelings, German ärschling, ärschlings.

More words from Middle English, Old English

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Selangor
Cite this entry
APA

arselong. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arselong

MLA

“arselong.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arselong. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “arselong,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arselong.

Source: arselong on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.