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Synonyms

backdate

American  
[bak-dayt] / ˈbækˌdeɪt /

verb (used with object)

  • backdates,
    present (3rd person singular)
  • backdated,
    past participle,  past
  • backdating
    present participle
  1. to date earlier than the actual date; predate; antedate.

    Backdate the letter so he'll think I wrote it last week.


backdate British  
/ ˌbækˈdeɪt /

verb

  1. (tr) to make effective from an earlier date

    the pay rise was backdated to August

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future


Etymology

Origin of backdate

An Americanism dating back to 1945–50; back 2 + date 1


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Teams can backdate IL moves up to three days.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026

The state, meanwhile, wants to backdate residence to Jan. 1.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 5, 2026

They accepted the deal in September after the company agreed to backdate the increase by an extra month.

From Reuters ● Dec. 23, 2022

The government already said three weeks ago that it aimed to backdate the measure to February.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 22, 2022

V. misdate, antedate, postdate, backdate, overdate†; anticipate; take no note of time, lose track of time; anachronize†.

From Roget's Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases by Peter Mark Roget

Our first example of backdated paperwork comes in 2006, after a new law in Cyprus meant that company accounts had to be made public.

From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026

But the government has been planning a change in the law for months, which would limit donations from Brits abroad to £100,000 each per year, backdated to 25 March this year.

From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026

EagleBank backdated the client’s loan payments to make it appear as though they were on time, the settlement says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

The government previously announced a £100,000 annual cap on donations from British citizens living overseas backdated to 25 March.

From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026

It felt like I was getting backdated karma for being a good person.

From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon

As had been reported in The Wall Street Journal, many well-timed option awards weren’t the product of luck, but of a widespread practice known as backdating.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 4, 2026

The Ethics Commission has accused Lee and Englander of backdating the checks to Aug. 4 — before they were interviewed by the FBI.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2025

By early 2015, months before Wired published its article, he was locked in disputes with the Australian tax office, which accused him of backdating documents and conducting “sham transactions,” court records show.

From New York Times ● May 21, 2024

In 1936, he opened the Jules Maes Saloon at 5919 Airport Way S., slyly backdating its founding to 1888.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 7, 2023

Government sources said there would be no movement on this year's pay award but ministers are considering backdating the 2023-24 pay rise to January.

From BBC ● Jan. 16, 2023

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