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back pocket

American  
[bak pahk-it] / ˈbæk ˈpɑk ɪt /

noun

  1. a pocket typically placed on the seat of a pair of trousers, jeans, or shorts.

  2. Sports. a defensive position in Australian Rules football.

  3. (especially in the phrase in one's back pocket) the state of being in reserve and ready for use when needed.

  4. (especially in the phrase in one's back pocket) the state of being under the control of a person or organization.

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.

Well, unless Intel has any more announcements in its back pocket, the rally is probably at least on pause for now.

From Barron's • Apr. 10, 2026

If he's losing every round and then pulls a punch out of his back pocket, does that throw him right back into the mix?

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2026

While I’m keeping the app option in my back pocket for later, we decided to go analog for our first budgeting rodeo by staring down our raw bank statements.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 31, 2026

Fact: Sitting with a large wallet in your back pocket can cause leg or hip pain and numbness, but typically not back pain.

From Science Daily • Dec. 15, 2025

He smiled gratefully and slid it out of his back pocket.

From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda

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.