fallback

1 of 2

noun

fall·​back ˈfȯl-ˌbak 

1

: something on which one can fall back : reserve

—often used attributively

a fallback career

a fallback position

2

: a falling back : retreat

3

: something that falls back

the fallback from an explosion

fall back

2 of 2

verb

fell back; fallen back; falling back; falls back

intransitive verb

: retreat, recede

see also:

fall back on

Synonyms of fallback

Verb

• withdraw
• retreat
• drop back
• pull out
• retire

Examples of fallback in a Sentence

Verb

resistance from native forces was greater than expected, and the invading army was forced to fall back

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

As gear prices have risen and household budgets have tightened, secondhand has moved from fallback option to first stop for savvy buyers. — William Jones, USA Today, 6 Aug. 2026

Consolidation without a credible fallback isn't efficiency, but a new single point of failure. — Serhii Zakharov, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2026

Verb

Post-intervention, the yen strengthened to 157 to the dollar, only to fall back to 159 by August 11, meaning the yen has already lost half of its post-intervention gains. — Nicholas Gordon, Fortune, 12 Aug. 2026

More dashboards or agents do not fix a process that falls back to email, meetings and spreadsheets when an exception occurs. — Robert Kramer, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1830, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Verb

1607, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for fallback

• aback
• attack
• backpack
• backtrack
• bareback
• blackjack
• brownback
• buyback
• callback
• cognac
• comeback
• cutback

Kids Definition

fall back

verb

: retreat entry 2 sense 1