drawback
Americannoun
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a hindrance or disadvantage; an undesirable or objectionable feature.
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Commerce. an amount paid back from a charge made.
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Government. a refund of tariff or other tax, as when imported goods are reexported.
noun
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a disadvantage or hindrance
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a refund of customs or excise duty paid on goods that are being exported or used in the production of manufactured exports
verb
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to retreat; move backwards
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to turn aside from an undertaking
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of drawback
First recorded in 1610–20; noun use of verb phrase draw back
Explanation
A drawback is a disadvantage or slight problem. Some drawbacks to adopting a puppy can include lost sleep, having your sneakers gnawed on, and spending too much money at the vet. When something is mainly positive but not perfect, those imperfections are drawbacks. You might love your new job working at the library on weekends, despite the drawback of needing to get up early on Saturday mornings. And even though the drawbacks to getting that adorable puppy are very real, you'll probably be glad you did it. This noun, which was coined in the 18th century, comes from the sense of drawing (or holding) back success.
Vocabulary lists containing drawback
Week 5: New Technology
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"A Place to Call Home" by Scott Bittle and Jonathan Rochkind
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Quiet Power
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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:
Despite their optical advantages, these nanoparticles have one major drawback.
From Science Daily ● May 18, 2026
But the Harden system has come with one serious drawback.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
“A potentially serious drawback to a joint will is that once one of the spouses dies, the other can’t make changes to it, no matter how necessary,” she adds.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 23, 2026
One drawback: Berkshire would face a tax bill for short-term capital gains.
From Barron's ● Jan. 21, 2026
But in Odessa, the drawback of doing that was obvious.
From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger
Hedging can help protect a portfolio during periods of market turbulence, but it also has important drawbacks.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
The results were faster than those produced through cavitation, but the method also had important drawbacks.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 20, 2026
But the use of air-conditioners isn't without its drawbacks.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
The lithium-ion batteries that supply much of today’s clean energy come with some infamous drawbacks, from fire risk to reliance on foreign mining.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
They work side by side, read, and talk—about art, and also about love, and marriage—with all its benefits and drawbacks.
From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
