back

1 of 4

noun

plural backs
1
a(1)
: the rear part of the human body especially from the neck to the end of the spine
(2)
: the body considered as the wearer of clothes
They were left with nothing but the clothes on their backs.
(3)
: capacity for labor, effort, or endurance
Put your back into it!
(4)
: the back considered as the seat of one's awareness of duty or failings
get off my back
(5)
: the back considered as an area of vulnerability
the police officer's partner always watches his back
b
: the part of a lower animal (such as a quadruped) corresponding to the human back
riding on the back of an elephant
c
: spinal column
She had surgery on her back.
d
: spine sense 1c
The title is on the book's back.
2
a
: the side or surface opposite the front or face
I only saw him from the back.
: the rear part
the back of the head
the back of the mirror
also : the farther or reverse side
wrote the number on the back of an envelope
b
: something at or on the back for support
back of a chair
c
: a place away from the front
sat in back
3
: a position in some games (such as football or soccer) behind the front line of players
also : a player in this position
a defensive back
4
informal : a swimming race in which swimmers use the backstroke
She placed first in the 100-meter back.
backed adjective
backless adjective

back

2 of 4

adverb

1
a
: to, toward, or at the rear
asked the crowd to move back
b
: in or into the past : backward in time
looking back on her youth
an event back in the last century
Back then, no one had ever heard of chronic fatigue syndrome.
also : ago
several years back
met him in the street two days back
c
: to or at an angle off the vertical
leaned back on his chair
d(1)
: under restraint
He wanted to fight but his friends held him back.
holding back a laugh
(2)
: in or into a delayed condition
Bad weather set the launch date back several days.
The meeting was pushed back at the last minute.
Season 2's final episodes were held back for a few weeks … before finally airing.Nick Valdez
e
: in an inferior or secondary position
especially : behind a competitor in points or ranking
finished three strokes back
2
a
: to, toward, or in a place from which a person or thing came
She left home and never went back.
put the book back
b
: to or toward a former state
went back to private life
c
: in return or reply
forgot to write back

back

3 of 4

adjective

1
a
: being at or in the back
back door
b
: distant from a central or main area
back roads
c
of a speech sound : articulated at or toward the back of the oral passage : formed deep within the mouth
back vowels
2
: having returned or been returned
3
: being in arrears : overdue
is owed several months in back pay
4
: moving or operating backward : reverse
back action with oars
5
: not current
back issues of a magazine
6
golf : constituting the final 9 holes of an 18-hole course

back

4 of 4

verb

backed; backing; backs

transitive verb

1
a
: to support by material or moral assistance
backing a candidate for governor
often used with up
back up a friend in a fight
b
: substantiate
often used with up
needs to back up her argument with evidence
c
: to assume financial responsibility for
back a new company
d
: to provide musical accompaniment for
often used with up
a singer backed up by a guitarist
2
a
: to cause to go back (see back entry 2 sense 1a) or in reverse
back the car into the garage
b
: to articulate (a speech sound) with the tongue farther back : to form deeper within the mouth
3
a
: to furnish with a rear part : to furnish with a back (see back entry 1 sense 2)
back a skirt with stiff material
b
: to be at the rear part of : to be at the back (see back entry 1 sense 2) of
a row of garages back the building

intransitive verb

1
: to move backward
backed into a parking space
often used with up
back up to give him some space
Let's back up a little to clarify what we're saying.
2
of the wind : to shift counterclockwise compare veer entry 1 sense 2
3
: to have the rear part facing in the direction of something
The house backs onto a golf course.
backer noun
Phrases
back of one's hand or back of the hand
: a show of contempt
back of one's mind
: the part of one's mind where thoughts and memories are stored to be drawn on
behind one's back
: without one's knowledge
talking about me behind my back
in back of
: behind
One day, I was sitting in the tiny parlor in back of the store …John McNulty
back and fill
1
nautical : to manage the sails of a ship so as to keep it clear of obstructions as it floats down with the current of a river or channel
2
: to take opposite positions alternately : shilly-shally
has been back and filling on the issue
back into
: to get into inadvertently
backed into the antiques business
Choose the Right Synonym for back

support, uphold, advocate, back, champion mean to favor actively one that meets opposition.

support is least explicit about the nature of the assistance given.

supports waterfront development

uphold implies extended support given to something attacked.

upheld the legitimacy of the military action

advocate stresses urging or pleading.

advocated prison reform

back suggests supporting by lending assistance to one failing or falling.

refusing to back the call for sanctions

champion suggests publicly defending one unjustly attacked or too weak to advocate his or her own cause.

championed the rights of children

recede, retreat, retract, back mean to move backward.

recede implies a gradual withdrawing from a forward or high fixed point in time or space.

the flood waters gradually receded

retreat implies withdrawal from a point or position reached.

retreating soldiers

retract implies drawing back from an extended position.

a cat retracting its claws

back is used with up, down, out, or off to refer to any retrograde motion.

backed off on the throttle

Examples of back in a Sentence

Noun She was carrying her little daughter on her back. She has a pain in the small of her back. I slapped him on his back to congratulate him. She stabbed him in the back. He had his hands behind his back. a bird with a dark back riding on the back of a horse a comfortable chair with a padded back Adverb The soldiers moved back from the front lines. The police asked the crowd to move back from the scene of the accident. He left his friends two miles back. She turned around and looked back toward him. a chapter beginning several pages back He left his home and never went back. It's time to go back home. She took the book off the shelf and forgot to put it back. In the opening chapter the author looks back on his youth. an event back in the last century Adjective He keeps his wallet in his back pocket. We came in through the back entrance. We drove on the back roads instead of the main roads. The company owes him several months in back pay. Verb I'm backing him for President. She backed the winner of the race and won a lot of money. She backed her argument with written evidence. She backed the singer on the guitar. She backed into a parking space. She backed out of the garage. The dog kept growling but backed off cautiously. back a skirt with stiff material
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Reba McEntire and John Legend kept their backs turned. Lars Brandle, Billboard, 6 Mar. 2024 Body Acne Steps Out From the Shadows Acne is a skin issue for 50 million Americans, and yet openly discussing breakouts, or asking for product recommendations, is still stigmatized, especially for blemishes on the back, chest, or butt. Hannah Baxter, Allure, 5 Mar. 2024 Hadid’s hair was styled with a black bow and a white flower detail and tied behind her head, hanging low on her back. Julia Moore, Peoplemag, 5 Mar. 2024 The more losses that pile up between now and then could increase the Hornets’ odds of landing a premium pick, giving them more of a choice of who to select and pair alongside Brandon Miller, who returned from his one-game back injury to lead them in scoring against the Raptors. Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 4 Mar. 2024 Not to mention the gentleman’s hat in the back left is gibberish. Maxwell Zeff / Gizmodo, Quartz, 4 Mar. 2024 But there is still a possibility for those who don’t want to think about the war to turn their backs on it. Fred Weir, The Christian Science Monitor, 22 Feb. 2024 Ask for layers with extra emphasis on face-framing pieces. 05 of 18 Angled Lob For thicker and heavier hair, an A-line long bob that's slightly shorter in the back and subtly layered can help add volume and lift. Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 22 Feb. 2024 The skirt combos are paired with an accompanying jacket with a silken back panel, or twinsets in bold color combinations, royal red and purple, yesteryear olive and pink. Colleen Barry, Quartz, 22 Feb. 2024
Adverb
On the front display (the watch has both front and back), there’s a perpetual calendar indication (day, date, and retrograde month displays), mean civil time, moonphase, and leap year cycle. Rebecca Suhrawardi, Robb Report, 7 Mar. 2024 While many of the special-edition vinyl have sold out, the Cardinal Picture Disc Vinyl, featuring a gorgeous illustration of two red cardinals amidst lush greenery, is now back in stock. Anna Tingley, Variety, 7 Mar. 2024 Among his players was his son, C.J. Dorsey, who is now a defensive back at Ferris State University in Michigan. Anna Lazarus Caplan, Peoplemag, 7 Mar. 2024 How does a team with most of its players back from the 2023 Final Four roster find itself in this rut? Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 7 Mar. 2024 For seasoned cooks and kitchen novices, cookbook author and nutritionist Robin Miller takes it back to basics with great, family-friendly recipes worth making over and over again. Robin Miller, The Arizona Republic, 7 Mar. 2024 Hartmann gave the money back to the man in the lobby, but then lied to the man saying detectives must've taken the envelope during his arrest. Adrienne Davis, Journal Sentinel, 7 Mar. 2024 Namely that in the first phase the Israeli military would pull back from Gazan cities and in a second withdraw from the enclave altogether, according to the diplomat who said the IDF is refusing to agree to those points. Alex Marquardt, CNN, 7 Mar. 2024 Herro immediately went down and grabbed his left knee before being helped back to the locker room. Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 24 Feb. 2024
Adjective
The back line was Noah Allen, replacing Alba, Nico Freire, Sergiy Kryvtsov, Tomas Aviles and Julian Gressel, playing right back in place of DeAndre Yedlin, who was traded to FC Cincinnati last week. Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 8 Mar. 2024 The mill produces 189 hp and 166 ft lbs of torque, all of which is sent to the back wheels by a five-speed manual transmission. Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 8 Mar. 2024 Accessibility: Wheelchair users can enter via a ramp at the back door; ADA-compliant restrooms. Tom Sietsema, Washington Post, 8 Mar. 2024 The armrests are wide enough for holding a beverage, and the extra-wide back pairs perfectly with throw pillows for a boost of style and comfort. Bridget Degnan, Southern Living, 7 Mar. 2024 Pulling back a large, unassuming curtain, a jazz trio was in the midst of a whirlwind jam, the cozy room reminiscent of a Chicago back-alley joint. Garret K. Woodward, Rolling Stone, 7 Mar. 2024 True to their name, yellowfin tuna have bright yellow dorsal and anal fins with dark blue coloring on the back and upper sides that transitions into a silver belly. David A. Brown, Field & Stream, 7 Mar. 2024 The canine, whom the soldiers have named Tiny Tammy, is unable to use her back legs and is likely to die in the area if aid is not provided to her, Paws of War, an animal protection organization, said in a press release obtained by PEOPLE. Nicholas Rice, Peoplemag, 3 Mar. 2024 Meanwhile, catching prospect Diego Cartaya has been limited by a back problem this spring. Bill Plunkett, Orange County Register, 2 Mar. 2024
Verb
Liman, who showed up tonight (in a cowboy hat) for the film’s SXSW premiere, has reacted with howls of betrayal over the fact that his film, backed by Amazon Studios, is not going to be playing in movie theaters. Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 9 Mar. 2024 At the beginning of Trump’s 2024 bid, senior advisers met and discussed how to expand his coalition, recognizing that winning would depend on his ability to attract voters who hadn’t backed him in the past, the adviser said. Marianne Levine, Washington Post, 8 Mar. 2024 Republicans fared far worse than expected, but instead of focusing on the liabilities of candidates backed by Mr. Trump who had pushed lies about the election system and been rejected by voters, Trump allies blamed the R.N.C. Maggie Haberman, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2024 Sauber will be taken over by Audi in 2026, but until then it’s brought in Kick, a video-streaming service backed by a casino company, to take the place of Alfa Romeo. Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 8 Mar. 2024 One recently accepted an endorsement from someone who ardently backed Chinese Communist Party Confucius Institutes in American schools. Israel? Michelle Steel, Orange County Register, 8 Mar. 2024 In the primary, Super PACs and outside groups spent more than a half a million dollars each to back Liccardo and Low, while a Super PAC backing Simitian shelled out $247,785. Grace Hase, The Mercury News, 7 Mar. 2024 Byrd also backed Manilow on Barry Manilow at the Gershwin (1989) and on the primetime network special Arista Records’ 25th Anniversary Celebration (2000). Paul Grein, Billboard, 7 Mar. 2024 Biden campaign co-chair Gov. Gretchen Whitmer − who has voiced concerns about Democrats planning to ditch Biden in the primary − has joined volunteers on phone banks ahead of Tuesday and pressed the issue to mobilize voters to back Biden. Detroit Free Press, 25 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'back.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Old English bæc; akin to Old High German bah back, Old Norse bak

Adverb

Middle English bac, aphetic form of abak aback

Adjective

Middle English, partly attributive use of bac, back back entry 1, partly derivative of back back entry 2

Verb

verbal derivative of back entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Adverb

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1548, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of back was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near back

Cite this Entry

“Back.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/back. Accessed 15 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

back

1 of 4 noun
1
a
: the rear part of the human body especially from the neck to the end of the spine
b
: the corresponding part of a four-footed or lower animal
2
: the part of something that is opposite or away from the front part
3
: something at or on the back for support
back of a chair
4
a
: a position in some games (as football or soccer) behind the front line of players
b
: a player in this position
backed adjective
backless adjective

back

2 of 4 adverb
1
a
: to, toward, or at the rear
b
: in or into the past : ago
c
: in or into a reclining position
d
: under control : in check
held back
2
: to, toward, or in a place from which a person or thing came
3
: in return or reply
write back
talk back

back

3 of 4 adjective
1
a
: being at or in the back
back door
b
: distant from a central or main area
back roads
2
: not yet paid : overdue
back rent
3
: no longer current
back issues of a magazine

back

4 of 4 verb
1
: to give aid or support to
2
: to move or cause to move back or backward
3
: to shift in a counterclockwise direction
the wind backed around
4
: to provide with a back
backer noun

Medical Definition

back

noun
1
a
: the rear part of the human body especially from the neck to the end of the spine
b
: the corresponding part of a lower animal (as a quadruped)
2
: the part of the upper surface of the tongue behind the front and lying opposite the soft palate when the tongue is at rest

Legal Definition

back

adjective
1
: being overdue or in arrears
back rent
2
: being retroactive especially as compensation
reinstated with back pay

Geographical Definition

Back

geographical name

river 605 miles (974 kilometers) long in Nunavut, Canada, rising along the border with the Northwest Territories and flowing east-northeast into the Arctic Ocean

More from Merriam-Webster on back

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!