back 1 of 4

adverb

Definition of backnext
1
as in ago
earlier than the present time that's longer back than I can remember

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in around
toward the opposite direction turned back for one last comment

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in backward
toward the rear concert security asked the crowd to move back

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

back

2 of 4

noun

ˈbak How to pronounce back (audio)
1
as in rear
a behind part or surface the back of the page was blank

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in jugular
a vulnerable point a candidate needing a loyal aide who can be relied upon to always watch his back

Synonyms & Similar Words

back

3 of 4

verb

1
as in to advocate
to promote the interests or cause of she enthusiastically backed the plan to renovate and upgrade the school's facilities

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to aid
to provide (someone) with what is useful or necessary to achieve an end a number of influential people have already agreed to back the candidate

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to reinforce
to provide evidence or information for (as a claim or idea) the author needs to back her thesis with more facts

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

back

4 of 4

adjective

as in hind
being at or in the part of something opposite the front part she carried all the presents in the back door, as the children were playing in the front yard

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word back different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of back are advocate, champion, support, and uphold. While all these words mean "to favor actively one that meets opposition," back suggests supporting by lending assistance to one failing or falling.

refusing to back the call for sanctions

When can advocate be used instead of back?

While the synonyms advocate and back are close in meaning, advocate stresses urging or pleading.

advocated prison reform

Where would champion be a reasonable alternative to back?

The words champion and back are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, champion suggests publicly defending one unjustly attacked or too weak to advocate his or her own cause.

championed the rights of children

When might support be a better fit than back?

In some situations, the words support and back are roughly equivalent. However, support is least explicit about the nature of the assistance given.

supports waterfront development

When is it sensible to use uphold instead of back?

The words uphold and back can be used in similar contexts, but uphold implies extended support given to something attacked.

upheld the legitimacy of the military action

How is the word back different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of back are advocate, champion, support, and uphold. While all these words mean "to favor actively one that meets opposition," back suggests supporting by lending assistance to one failing or falling.

refusing to back the call for sanctions

When can advocate be used instead of back?

While the synonyms advocate and back are close in meaning, advocate stresses urging or pleading.

advocated prison reform

Where would champion be a reasonable alternative to back?

The words champion and back are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, champion suggests publicly defending one unjustly attacked or too weak to advocate his or her own cause.

championed the rights of children

When might support be a better fit than back?

In some situations, the words support and back are roughly equivalent. However, support is least explicit about the nature of the assistance given.

supports waterfront development

When is it sensible to use uphold instead of back?

The words uphold and back can be used in similar contexts, but uphold implies extended support given to something attacked.

upheld the legitimacy of the military action

How is the word back different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of back are advocate, champion, support, and uphold. While all these words mean "to favor actively one that meets opposition," back suggests supporting by lending assistance to one failing or falling.

refusing to back the call for sanctions

When can advocate be used instead of back?

While the synonyms advocate and back are close in meaning, advocate stresses urging or pleading.

advocated prison reform

Where would champion be a reasonable alternative to back?

The words champion and back are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, champion suggests publicly defending one unjustly attacked or too weak to advocate his or her own cause.

championed the rights of children

When might support be a better fit than back?

In some situations, the words support and back are roughly equivalent. However, support is least explicit about the nature of the assistance given.

supports waterfront development

When is it sensible to use uphold instead of back?

The words uphold and back can be used in similar contexts, but uphold implies extended support given to something attacked.

upheld the legitimacy of the military action

How is the word back different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of back are advocate, champion, support, and uphold. While all these words mean "to favor actively one that meets opposition," back suggests supporting by lending assistance to one failing or falling.

refusing to back the call for sanctions

When can advocate be used instead of back?

While the synonyms advocate and back are close in meaning, advocate stresses urging or pleading.

advocated prison reform

Where would champion be a reasonable alternative to back?

The words champion and back are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, champion suggests publicly defending one unjustly attacked or too weak to advocate his or her own cause.

championed the rights of children

When might support be a better fit than back?

In some situations, the words support and back are roughly equivalent. However, support is least explicit about the nature of the assistance given.

supports waterfront development

When is it sensible to use uphold instead of back?

The words uphold and back can be used in similar contexts, but uphold implies extended support given to something attacked.

upheld the legitimacy of the military action

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
Adverb
Smiley Martin died from methadone toxicity while in custody back in 2024. —James Taylor, CBS News, 2 Apr. 2026 Curry's younger brother, Seth, came off the bench to contribute 12 points in his second game back after missing eight with a strained left inner thigh. —ABC News, 2 Apr. 2026
Noun
Hunching over your phone or a computer screen tightens your chest and the middle of your back. —Dana Santas, CNN Money, 3 Apr. 2026 However, by early February the pain shifted from his back and hips to his chest. —Vanessa Etienne, PEOPLE, 3 Apr. 2026
Verb
Companies that seemed invincible, led by executives who seemed untouchable, backed by portfolios that seemed bulletproof—all gone. —Brendan Keegan, Rolling Stone, 3 Apr. 2026 Family members have typically backed Republican candidates and groups in the state, though several have supported candidates and causes across the political spectrum. —Jessica Mathews, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
Evan Fry was born in 2003, a point in human history when many people’s back pockets held a Nokia 1100 or the Sony Ericsson T610. —Leah Dolan, CNN Money, 1 Apr. 2026 West Suburban agreed to start paying current taxes in September and to start making payments toward its back taxes in January, but did not do either, department spokesperson Melissa Kula said in an email. —Lisa Schencker, Chicago Tribune, 1 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for back
Recent Examples of Synonyms for back
  1. ago
  2. around
  3. backward
  4. rear
  5. jugular
  6. advocate
  7. aid
  8. reinforce
Adverb
  • The two friends met years ago while working for different social justice organizations.
    — Amanda Rosa, Miami Herald, 4 Apr. 2026
  • Some months ago, the Silicon Valley Monterey Bay Council of Scouting America had selected Diridon as the honoree at its Distinguished Citizens Dinner, which was to be held May 2.
    — Sal Pizarro, Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2026
Definition of ago
Adverb
  • According to Turner, Kaiko and her littermates lived outdoors in a pen from birth until she was rescued at around nine months old.
    — Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
  • Over the years since its mission began in 1978, the force has lost around 340 members.
    — Lucia I Suarez Sang, CBS News, 31 Mar. 2026
Definition of around
Adverb
  • By studying the energy, direction, and number of D0 mesons produced, the researchers could work backward to estimate how gluons, the particles that glue quarks together, are distributed inside the nucleus.
    — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 28 Mar. 2026
  • There’s a small drop backwards.
    — Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 28 Mar. 2026
Definition of backward
Noun
  • The pickup truck was then forced into the rear of a Volvo tractor-trailer, state police said.
    — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 1 Apr. 2026
  • Eighth grader Ronnie Eckman was helping bring up the rear as the excited students walked briskly.
    — Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 1 Apr. 2026
Definition of rear
Noun
  • Wolf packs on the hunt encircled their prey—typically elk—clamping at the jugular when their target grew weary from the chase.
    — Nidhi Sharma, Popular Science, 12 Mar. 2026
  • The change added a room where prisoners are to be examined and prepped for either a standard peripheral IV, or a central line — a more invasive procedure that inserts into the internal jugular in the neck, a femoral vein in the upper thigh or a subclavian vein in the chest.
    — Kevin Fixler, Idaho Statesman, 11 Mar. 2026
Definition of jugular
Verb
  • In contrast, the Fraternal Order of Eagles advocated for pensions for industrial wage laborers—for people who had worked in jobs that wore out their bodies and left them physically unable to work.
    — Trevor Jackson, The New York Review of Books, 4 Apr. 2026
  • Shailin managed to refer some families to human-rights groups that advocate for prisoners in Iran.
    — Cora Engelbrecht, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026
Definition of advocate
Verb
  • Police say the cameras have aided in investigations, including a crash at Peachtree Blvd.
    — Leondra Head, CBS News, 31 Mar. 2026
  • His efforts were greatly aided, Kirkpatrick reports, by the fact that so many of them feared for their lives—after several of their fellow-scientists had been assassinated in Israeli operations.
    — David Remnick, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026
Definition of aid
Verb
  • Ezra's parents say that the moment is one that will be memorable for some time to come, further reinforcing his dreams of one day joining the law enforcement community.
    — Lesley Marin, CBS News, 4 Apr. 2026
  • Authorities reinforced security around Jewish sites in the wake of explosions last month outside synagogues in Liege, Belgium, and the Dutch port city of Rotterdam and outside a Jewish school in Amsterdam.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 4 Apr. 2026
Definition of reinforce

Phrases Containing back

Browse Nearby Words

baches
back
backache
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Cite this Entry

“Back.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/back. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on back

Nglish: Translation of back for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about back

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