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

Both Ruto, behind the wheel, and Chivayo are seen laughing, with Chivayo's wife grinning from the back seat. — Arkansas Online, 2 Oct. 2026

Marris pointed to her daughter, asleep in the back seat of her SUV, and explained Brooklyn’s digestion struggles. — CNN Money, 1 Oct. 2026

In photos obtained by the Daily Mail, the singer could be seen smiling in the back seat of an SUV while her soccer player boyfriend of two years grinned from the front seat. — Meg Walters, InStyle, 28 Sep. 2026

The plastic covering the backsides of the front high-back seats is even cheaper-looking and feeling. — Joel Feder, The Drive, 24 Sep. 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