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

• backup
• bottleneck
• jam
• jam-up
• logjam
• snarl
• tie-up

Examples of tailback in a Sentence

stuck in a five-mile tailback on the southbound carriageway

Recent Examples on the Web

Most recently, the Philadelphia Eagles won the Super Bowl — and not just due to the addition of tailback Saquon Barkley. —C. Isaiah Smalls Ii, Miami Herald, 6 May 2025

The defense has the pieces to be good again, and Heupel’s offense, fortified by Duke transfer tailback Star Thomas, could still do well. —Seth Emerson, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025

Maybe the running back-needy Denver Broncos, at pick No. 20, want to get ahead of the running back-needy Dallas Cowboys at pick No. 12 to draft Boise State tailback Ashton Jeanty and put a call into general manager John Lynch. —Matt Barrows, The Athletic, 16 Jan. 2025

The Texans used the pick Miami sent them to draft USC tailback Woody Marks. —Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 26 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1930, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for tailback

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