tailback

noun

tail·​back ˈtāl-ˌbak 

1

: the offensive football back farthest from the line of scrimmage

2

British : a line of vehicles caused by a traffic slowdown or stoppage

Synonyms of tailback

• jam
• congestion
• bottleneck
• snarl

Examples of tailback in a Sentence

stuck in a five-mile tailback on the southbound carriageway

Recent Examples on the Web

Fletcher and his fellow tailbacks took advantage of the play calls. — Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 14 Oct. 2026

Georgia is particularly thin at the tailback position, down three scholarship players since the end of spring drills. — Mike Griffith, AJC.com, 12 Oct. 2026

Gordon rushed for exactly 100 yards, even as he was limited to just nine carries and wasn’t even the starter as the first tailback up behind Achane. — David Furones, Sun Sentinel, 8 Oct. 2026

Russian assaults since Thursday have forced the full or partial closure of three of Kyiv's six road bridges, suspending traffic and causing tailbacks in the Ukrainian capital. — Arkansas Online, 5 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1930, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for tailback

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