I. ˈbak noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English bæc; akin to Old High German bah back, Old Norse bak
Date: before 12th century
1.
a.
(1) : the rear part of the human body especially from the neck to the end of the spine
(2) : the body considered as the wearer of clothes
(3) : capacity for labor, effort, or endurance
(4) : the back considered as the seat of one's awareness of duty or failings
get off my back
(5) : the back considered as an area of vulnerability
the police officer's partner always watches his back
b. : the part of a lower animal (as a quadruped) corresponding to the human back
c. : spinal column
d. : spine 1c
2.
a. : the side or surface opposite the front or face : the rear part ; also : the farther or reverse side
b. : something at or on the back for support
back of a chair
c. : a place away from the front
sat in back
3. : a position in some games (as football or soccer) behind the front line of players ; also : a player in this position
• backed ˈbakt adjective
• back·less ˈbak-ləs adjective
•
- back of one's hand
- back of one's mind
- behind one's back
- in back of
II. adverb
Date: 14th century
1.
a. : to, toward, or at the rear
b. : in or into the past : backward in time ; also : ago
c. : to or at an angle off the vertical
d.
(1) : under restraint
(2) : in a delayed or retarded condition
2.
a. : to, toward, or in a place from which a person or thing came
b. : to or toward a former state
c. : in return or reply
III. adjective
Date: 15th century
1.
a. : being at or in the back
back door
b. : distant from a central or main area
back roads
c. : articulated at or toward the back of the oral passage
back vowels
2. : having returned or been returned
3. : being in arrears : overdue
4. : moving or operating backward : reverse
5. : not current
back issues of a magazine
6. : constituting the final 9 holes of an 18-hole golf course
IV. verb
Date: 1548
transitive verb
1.
a. : to support by material or moral assistance — often used with up
b. : substantiate
c. : to assume financial responsibility for
d. : to provide musical accompaniment for — often used with up
2.
a. : to cause to go back or in reverse
b. : to articulate (a sound) with the tongue farther back
3.
a. : to furnish with a back
b. : to be at the back of
intransitive verb
1. : to move backward — often used with up
2. of the wind : to shift counterclockwise — compare veer
3. : to have the back in the direction of something
Synonyms: see support , recede
• back·er ˈba-kər noun
•
- back and fill
- back into