: an act or instance of reproducing recorded sound or pictures often immediately after recording
played back; playing back; plays back
: to perform a playback of (a usually recently recorded disc or tape)
Examples of playback in a Sentence
Noun
The band listened to a playback of their first recording.
Recent Examples on the Web
Andrew Liszewski, The Verge, 4 June 2026
The mobile playback screen looks largely the same.
—Jordan Minor, PC Magazine, 1 June 2026
Stephen L. Betts, Rolling Stone, 9 June 2026
But what’s especially fitting is that Adell brought that Canseco play back to life in a World Cup year.
—Jayson Stark, New York Times, 5 June 2026
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Noun
Battery life is estimated to be up to nine hours of playback that can be extended to up to 36 hours with their charging case.
—Andrew Liszewski, The Verge, 4 June 2026
The mobile playback screen looks largely the same.
—Jordan Minor, PC Magazine, 1 June 2026
Verb
His father’s Sunday sermons were played back on local radio station WLBN 1590 AM, a 1,000-watt station operating from sunrise to sunset.
—Stephen L. Betts, Rolling Stone, 9 June 2026
But what’s especially fitting is that Adell brought that Canseco play back to life in a World Cup year.
—Jayson Stark, New York Times, 5 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for playback
Cite this Entry
“Playback.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/playback. Accessed 16 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
playback
1 of 2 noun
play·back
ˈplā-ˌbak 
: the action of reproducing recorded sound or pictures often immediately after recording
play back
2 of 2 verb(ˈ)plā-ˈbak
: to perform a playback of (a disc or tape)
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