back·stop
ˈbak-ˌstäp 
plural backstops
1
: something at the back serving as a stop: such as
a
: a screen or fence for keeping a ball from leaving the field of play
b
: a stop (such as a pawl) that prevents a backward movement (as of a wheel)
2
: a player (such as the catcher) positioned behind the batter
3
: something or someone that provides dependable support or protection against failure or loss
As the cold war heated up, Hoover became the country's backstop against subversion.—
David M. Oshinsky
David M. Oshinsky
backstopped; backstopping; backstops
2
: to serve as a backstop to
3
: to play the position of goalkeeper for
backstop a hockey team
Examples of backstop in a Sentence
Noun
The pitch got past the catcher and rolled all the way to the backstop.
kept some gold as a backstop in case the value of the local currency collapsed
Verb
the Nobel-winning geneticist was of course backstopped in his research by a team of highly talented assistants
Recent Examples on the Web
Brittany Ghiroli, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
Naylor the Younger’s still in Cleveland, though, and still mostly a glove-first backstop.
—Ryan Ford, Freep.com, 29 Sep. 2025
Bloomberg, Mercury News, 25 Sep. 2025
If finalized, procuring M109A7s would transform Taiwan’s ground firepower and backstop its rocket and missile capabilities.
—Kapil Kajal, Interesting Engineering, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for backstop
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Noun
Raleigh finished the regular season ranked first in the majors in home runs, leading the AL in RBIs and posting a fWAR over 9, a total greater than the rest of the division’s backstops combined.
—Brittany Ghiroli, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
Naylor the Younger’s still in Cleveland, though, and still mostly a glove-first backstop.
—Ryan Ford, Freep.com, 29 Sep. 2025
Verb
In that deal, Google also agreed to backstop a decade-long Fluidstack contract to buy capacity.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 25 Sep. 2025
If finalized, procuring M109A7s would transform Taiwan’s ground firepower and backstop its rocket and missile capabilities.
—Kapil Kajal, Interesting Engineering, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for backstop
Cite this Entry
“Backstop.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/backstop. Accessed 15 Oct. 2025.
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