backlog

American  

[bak-lawg, -log] / ˈbækˌlɔg, -ˌlɒg /

noun

• backlogs
  plural

1. a reserve or accumulation, as of stock, work, or business.

   a backlog of business orders.

   Synonyms:

   reservoir, cache, fund, store, stock, supply

2. a large log at the back of a hearth to keep up a fire.

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verb (used with object)

backlogged, backlogging

1. to hold in reserve, as for future handling or repair.

2. to enter and acknowledge (an order) for future shipment.

verb (used without object)

backlogged, backlogging

1. to accumulate in a backlog.

   Orders are starting to backlog faster than we can process them.

backlog British  

/ ˈbækˌlɒɡ /

noun

1. an accumulation of uncompleted work, unsold stock, etc, to be dealt with

2. a large log at the back of a fireplace

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• backlogs
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of backlog

First recorded in 1675–85; back ¹ + log ¹

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Explanation

When you have extra work to do that keeps accumulating, you have a backlog. Sometimes people stay late at their jobs to take care of a backlog. A backlog of tasks might slow down an ordinary day at an office or store, or require workers to come in on the weekend to catch up. In 1680, a backlog meant "a large log placed at the back of a fireplace," and by the 1880s it came to also mean "something stored for later use." It wasn't until the early 20th century that a backlog most often referred to "extra unfulfilled orders."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

backlog backlogs backlogged backlogging

“A strong customer base, established record of execution, backlog conversion and leading infrastructure performance is all supportive of their issuer profile relative to neocloud peers, in our view,” the analysts say.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

Mackey estimates that the 1.75GW backlog maps to about $1.9 billion in prospective revenue and $366 million in gross margins.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

CoreWeave did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday, though a company spokesperson told MarketWatch on Wednesday that it is confident that its revenue backlog “supports all of our debt obligations.”

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2026

There are, however, indications the backlog is now stabilising after the government committed unlimited funding to pay for more judges to sit in courts that were otherwise being unused.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026

She also had to sort through the unit’s massive backlog of paperwork.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

The proposals triggered an outcry across many parts of the criminal justice world, with many opponents saying that eroding the 800-year-old right to trial by jury would not solve the backlogs.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026

Some people reported waits of up to two hours, while hundreds of ticket holders were reportedly turned away due to backlogs when the museum closed early last week due to a private event.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026

He said it is important to reduce visa backlogs and modernize the immigration system to meet the needs of our economy and support employers and legal immigrants.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

The market for large turbines used at power plants has multiyear backlogs because of rising demand for power, much of it coming from the AI boom.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026

We selected butternut for backlogs, because, when green, it burns very slowly and lasts a long time.

From Woodcraft by George Washington Sears

The U.S. needs to build more power plants, poles and wires to meet rising electricity demand, but projects and supply chains are backlogged in every direction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026

This is not normal; immigration court is deeply backlogged and most cases of asylum—one of the most complex forms of U.S. immigration—were being assigned well into 2029 and 2030.

From Slate ● Mar. 27, 2026

Pending approval by the House and signing by President Donald Trump, a reopened government would pave the way for a flood of backlogged economic data and the resumption of normal airline operations, among other functions.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 11, 2025

The government said it changed the rules to "enhance" the link between Italy and the citizen abroad, avoid 'abuse' and 'commercialisation' of passports, and free up resources to clear backlogged applications.

From BBC ● May 21, 2025

If everyone who came before the court for a competency hearing brought out a bunch of irrelevant witnesses and made long speeches, the court calendar would be backlogged for decades.

From Eastern Standard Tribe by Cory Doctorow

Interviews documented in the police report suggest that a key cause of the backlogging at the lab is a 2009 US Supreme Court decision known as Melendez-Diaz v.

From Nature ● Oct. 10, 2012

But in two fair-sized cities, Portland, Ore., and New Orleans, district attorneys claim that they have been able to get stiffer sentences without backlogging the court docket by cutting down on plea bargaining.

From Time Magazine Archive

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Related Words

• inventory
• stockpile

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