fallback

1 of 2

noun

fall·​back ˈfȯl-ˌbak 

1

: something on which one can fall back : reserve

—often used attributively

a fallback career

a fallback position

2

: a falling back : retreat

3

: something that falls back

the fallback from an explosion

fall back

2 of 2

verb

fell back; fallen back; falling back; falls back

intransitive verb

: retreat, recede

see also:

fall back on

Synonyms of fallback

Verb

• withdraw
• retreat
• drop back
• pull out
• retire

Examples of fallback in a Sentence

Verb

resistance from native forces was greater than expected, and the invading army was forced to fall back

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Transparency is a service standard, not a fallback. —Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 11 June 2026

However, Anthropic said early testing showed that fewer than 5% of sessions triggered a fallback response. —Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 9 June 2026

Verb

This is the second consecutive playing of the event at TPC Toronto, so players will have some course knowledge to fall back on this year. —Mike Fore, Forbes.com, 11 June 2026

Goldberg fell back in her chair as her cohosts watched. —Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 11 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1830, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Verb

1607, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for fallback

• aback
• attack
• backpack
• backtrack
• bareback
• blackjack
• brownback
• buyback
• callback
• cognac
• comeback
• cutback

Kids Definition

fall back

verb

: retreat entry 2 sense 1