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back channel

American

[bak chan-l] / ˈbæk ˌtʃæn l /

Or backchannel

noun

a secret, unofficial, or informal channel of communication as used in politics or diplomacy.

sensitive information passed on through a back channel.

Other Word Forms

back-channel adjective
back-channeling noun

Etymology

Origin of back channel

First recorded in 1965–70

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.

The message went via a Pakistani facilitated back channel, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar has said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 29, 2026

It is possible that back channel contacts could well produce a ceasefire, followed by a return to talks.

From BBC • Mar. 1, 2026

These talks went on for a month, completely in a back channel.

From Slate • Nov. 24, 2025

In that email, Costello told Cohen he spoke with Giuliani, who “said thank you for opening this back channel of communication and asked me to keep in touch.”

From Salon • May 21, 2024

Each of them had a different suggestion to make, ranging from dragging through a half-empty back channel just below the town to taking the boat out and running it down the track on a push-cart.

From Down the Columbia by Freeman, Lewis R. (Lewis Ransome)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023