back-channel

adjective

Definition of back-channelnext
as in off-the-record

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of back-channel The debate over military options became moot, however, once the Obama administration announced an interim nuclear deal with Tehran, negotiated in 2013 via back-channel diplomacy through Oman. — Dalia Dassa Kaye, Foreign Affairs, 27 Oct. 2026 There was also a proposal for an AI-hotline-style back-channel between the two countries to provide early warning and additional context should rogue AI conduct unplanned operations. — Jon Martindale, PC Magazine, 16 Oct. 2026 Rubio has led back-channel talks with Raúl Castro’s grandson, Raúl Guillermo Rodriguez Castro, but Cuban officials say talks with the administration are at a stalemate. — Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 23 Sep. 2026 Pakistan has been an important back-channel player in reaching Iran, and the positive tone of its comments eased oil markets a bit. — Brian Sullivan, CNBC, 27 Aug. 2026 The real deals are locked in over late-night dinners, back-channel texts and quiet handshakes months in advance. — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 12 Aug. 2026 The route threads through waterfront parks, past the Island Park and Wildlife Sanctuary’s back-channel islands, and along quiet residential streets. — John Godfrey Published, Midwest Living, 8 Aug. 2026 In Japan, moderates had begun back-channel discussions with the Soviet Union (with whom Japan was not at war) in an effort to end the fighting and preserve the Japanese monarchy. — Britannica Editors, Encyclopedia Britannica, 5 Aug. 2026 In July 1971, Henry Kissinger, then national security adviser to President Richard Nixon, arrived in Beijing on his famous secret mission — the back-channel visit that helped re-open the door between two countries that had little direct contact for more than two decades. — Xianda Huang, The Conversation, 16 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for back-channel
  1. off-the-record
  2. closed-door
  3. off-the-books
  4. clandestine
  5. surreptitious
  6. covert
Adjective
  • In all, the on-the-record remarks lasted about 30 minutes and were followed by a larger off-the-record mixer with the media involving additional Skydance executives.
    — Dade Hayes, Deadline, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Sacramento Kings media day Monday apparently came with some off-the-record player reviews that accidentally went on the record.
    — Don Sweeney, Sacbee.com, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of off-the-record
Adjective
  • Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates departs after a closed-door interview with the House Oversight Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on June 10, 2026.
    — Dan Mangan, CNBC, 23 June 2026
Definition of closed-door
Adjective
  • In China, trillions of dollars of off-the-books debt have piled up at the local rather than the national level, as local governments borrowed public funds to invest in residential real estate and infrastructure.
    — NIALL FERGUSON, Foreign Affairs, 20 Oct. 2026
  • According to interviews and records, Perera built an off-the-books real estate and construction business, parts of which operated in Ohio.
    — Joe Rubin, Sacbee.com, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of off-the-books
Adjective
  • There was something sad in our meetups always having to be clandestine.
    — Erica Garza, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026
  • The arrest, the official explained, came after the Attorney General’s Office concluded that there had been misconduct in an April operation in which state officials dismantled a clandestine drug-manufacturing laboratory.
    — Mauricio Torres, CNN Money, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of clandestine
Adjective
  • Many hosts report resistance, in the forms of surreptitious card-shuffling and outright complaints.
    — Judith Martin, Mercury News, 28 Sep. 2026
  • To unearth these surreptitious practices, Gamers Nexus partnered up with independent security researchers and Level1Techs.
    — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of surreptitious
Adjective
  • Anthropic also wants to investigate covert misalignment, where models conceal their intentions instead of openly displaying concerning behavior.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 31 Oct. 2026
  • Tehran denies involvement, but the incident raises the prospect of covert operations against American military assets beyond the Middle East.
    — Hamidreza Azizi, Time, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of covert

Browse Nearby Words

backbreaking
back-channel
backchat
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Cite this Entry

“Back-channel.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/back-channel. Accessed 31 Oct. 2026.

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