Illustration of backhand
- backhand 1a
back·hand
ˈbak-ˌhand 
1
a
: a stroke (as in tennis) made with the back of the hand turned in the direction of movement
also
: the side on which such strokes are made
b
: a catch (as in baseball) made to the side of the body opposite the hand being used
2
: handwriting whose strokes slant downward from left to right
: made with a backhand
a backhand tennis stroke
backhanded; backhanding; backhands
: to do, hit, or catch backhand
Examples of backhand in a Sentence
Noun
She has a good backhand but a weak forehand.
Recent Examples on the Web
James Hansen, New York Times, 24 July 2025
Alcaraz hit a deep defensive shot and recovered quickly, dancing across the court with fleet little steps, and ran around his backhand to hit a forehand down the line.
—Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 14 July 2025
Dylan Bumbarger, oregonlive, 26 Nov. 2022
Dalton, who has four game-winning goals this season, beat Quinnipiac goalie Logan Angers with a backhand shot 11:42, then Emma Seitz scores from point-blank range from in front of the right circle at 16:21.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 21 Jan. 2023
Dallas News, 30 Jan. 2022
When one last backhand by Nadal found the net, Tiafoe put his hands on his head.
—Howard Fendrich, Chicago Tribune, 6 Sep. 2022
Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 19 May 2025
The next batter, Chapman, sent a 110 mph grounder down the line that Iglesias backhanded while sliding, then got up and threw to first.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for backhand
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Noun
Tsitsipas has also switched rackets and attempted to make tactical changes to his game, hitting through his one-handed backhand more, especially on return.
—James Hansen, New York Times, 24 July 2025
Alcaraz hit a deep defensive shot and recovered quickly, dancing across the court with fleet little steps, and ran around his backhand to hit a forehand down the line.
—Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 14 July 2025
Adjective
The Winterhawks don’t get back as a give-and-go between Korchinski and Schaefer in the neutral zone creates a 2-on-1, and Korchinski quickly makes a backhand feed to Crnkovic in front.
—Dylan Bumbarger, oregonlive, 26 Nov. 2022
Dalton, who has four game-winning goals this season, beat Quinnipiac goalie Logan Angers with a backhand shot 11:42, then Emma Seitz scores from point-blank range from in front of the right circle at 16:21.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 21 Jan. 2023
Adverb
Radulov showed backhand before pulling it to his forehand and slipping the puck past Linus Ullmark.
—Dallas News, 30 Jan. 2022
When one last backhand by Nadal found the net, Tiafoe put his hands on his head.
—Howard Fendrich, Chicago Tribune, 6 Sep. 2022
Verb
But Barkov pulled the puck back forward and under his left skate and smoothly backhanded it into the net at 7:43 of the second to tie it at 1-1.
—Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 19 May 2025
The next batter, Chapman, sent a 110 mph grounder down the line that Iglesias backhanded while sliding, then got up and threw to first.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for backhand
Cite this Entry
“Backhand.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/backhand. Accessed 31 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
backhand
1 of 4 noun
back·hand
-ˌhand
1
a
: a stroke (as in tennis) made with the back of the hand turned in the direction of movement
b
: a catch made with the arm across the body and the palm turned away from the body
2
: handwriting in which the letters slant to the left
backhand
2 of 4 adjective
: using or made with a backhand
backhand
3 of 4 verb
: to do, hit, or catch with a backhand
backhand
4 of 4 adverb
variants
or backhanded
ˈbak-ˈhan-dəd
: with a backhand
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