back seat

noun

ˈbak-ˈsēt 

variants or less commonly backseat

1

: a seat in the back (as of an automobile)

2

: a secondary or inferior position

… the issues and concerns that have sometimes been given a back seat …

—Al Gore

see also take a back seat

Examples of back seat in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Lord’s video is shot from the back seat of a car cruising down Sunset, the camera tracking other street ads beyond the windshield, centering a lasso-wielding Marlboro Cowboy, a Star Wars movie billboard, and one for the box-office flop Perfect (1985), starring Jamie Lee Curtis and John Travolta. —Jonathan Odden, Artforum, 2 June 2026

Unbeknownst to Spears, Miles had left his gun in the back seat of Miller’s car. —Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 2 June 2026

Law enforcement vehicles typically cannot be unlocked from the back seats. —Los Angeles Times, 1 June 2026

At the moment, for Joel and his younger sister, Estafania, homework is taking a back seat to this summer's World Cup – which is the perfect distraction at this dinner table for a family that badly needs one. —Jim Axelrod, CBS News, 31 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1715, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for back seat

• amit
• athlete
• backseat
• blackfeet
• broadsheet
• browbeat
• buckwheat
• compete
• compleat
• complete
• conceit
• concrete