tailbacks

plural of tailback, British
as in jams
a crowded mass (as of cars) that impedes or blocks movement stuck in a five-mile tailback on the southbound carriageway

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 tailbacks Because the Dolphins chose not to activate Jalen Wright for the game — instead going with five receivers and two tailbacks on the game day roster — the Dolphins seemingly had to abandon the two tailbacks package that was effective in last week’s win over the Falcons. Omar Kelly updated October 31, Miami Herald, 31 Oct. 2025 Ott ranks fourth in attempts among tailbacks, behind Tory Blaylock (42), Jovantae Barnes (19) and Xavier Robinson (13). Antonio Morales, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025 Your tailbacks and your offensive line are good enough to be your base. Troy Renck, Denver Post, 8 Sep. 2025 There are bound to be a few upside surprises, just as there were last season with two dynamic tailbacks. Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 11 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tailbacks
Noun
  • Examples include The Dutch Kettle of Hamptonville, which makes fruit jams, jellies and barbecue sauce.
    Chase Jordan November 5, Charlotte Observer, 5 Nov. 2025
  • The berries, which birds also love, can be eaten fresh or made into jams and jellies.
    Arricca Elin SanSone, Southern Living, 2 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • The result has been a seemingly endless run of East Washington Street roadwork and traffic snarls from Alabama Street downtown to I-465.
    Ryan Murphy, IndyStar, 25 Sep. 2025
  • There was talk of traffic snarls and strain on the power grid.
    Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 24 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • In total, 40 high-volume airports have seen a reduction in flights starting Friday morning across major metropolitan areas such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Dallas to prioritize air traffic safety and alleviate any bottlenecks from the labor concerns.
    Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 7 Nov. 2025
  • The new method, led by associate professor Gunvant Patil, dramatically reduces the time needed to regenerate plants and eliminates one of the biggest bottlenecks in biotechnology, tissue culture.
    Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 6 Nov. 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Tailbacks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tailbacks. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!