backstop

[ bak-stop ]

/ ˈbækˌstɒp /

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See synonyms for backstop on Thesaurus.com

noun

a wall, wire screen, or the like, serving to prevent a ball from going too far beyond the normal playing area.

Baseball. the catcher.

a person or thing that serves as a support, safeguard, or reinforcement: There were technicians on board as backstops to the automated controls.

verb (used without object), back·stopped, back·stop·ping.

to act as a backstop.

verb (used with object), back·stopped, back·stop·ping.

to act as a backstop to: The government agreed to backstop companies that invested in oil exploration.

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Origin of backstop

First recorded in 1810–20; back¹ + stop

OTHER WORDS FROM backstop

backstopper, noun

Words nearby backstop

back staff, backstage, backstairs, backstay, backstitch, backstop, backstory, back straight, backstrap loom, back street, backstretch

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use backstop in a sentence

California’s offsets are considered additional carbon reductions because the floor serves “as a conservative backstop,” Clegern said.
A Nonprofit Promised to Preserve Wildlife. Then It Made Millions Claiming It Could Cut Down Trees.|by Lisa Song, and James Temple, MIT Technology Review|May 10, 2021|ProPublica
Credits in the pool can never be sold, but act as a kind of backstop in case of wildfires, drought and other events.
The climate solution actually adding millions of tons of CO2 into the atmosphere|James Temple, Lisa Song|April 29, 2021|MIT Technology Review
Instead, it calls on government to act as a backstop through incentives that will lead to job creation and provide greater access to the safety net while expanding things like universal pre-kindergarten and childcare.
Sacramento Report: We Have a Schools Deal|Voice of San Diego|March 5, 2021|Voice of San Diego
It paid for a backstop and dugouts at a neighborhood Little League field.
Domino Sugar is replacing its massive neon landmark in Baltimore — and hopes no one will notice a difference|Colin Campbell|February 7, 2021|Washington Post

The government is going to be putting a backstop on certain parts of the economy.
Adena Friedman, CEO of Nasdaq, on the Red-Hot Market and Critics of Her Diversity Plan|Eben Shapiro|December 13, 2020|Time
On the other, you risk ballooning one into the backstop in front of 50,000 people.
Viral Video of the Day: Chrissy Teigen's Drunken Dodger Pitch|Jack Holmes|August 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
After the corporate split, the paper will no longer have blockbuster movies to backstop it.
New York Post Looks Thinner After News Corporation Split|David Freedlander|July 18, 2013|DAILY BEAST
It could serve as a backstop for Mitt, bringing him over the top at the last possible moment.
The GOP’s Chaotic Primary Calendar Makes Early Nomination Clinch Tough|John Avlon|February 17, 2012|DAILY BEAST
And Perry thinks TARP was a total mistake—along with all subsequent efforts to backstop or stimulate the economy.
Perry’s Entitlement Problem|Andrew Romano|August 12, 2011|DAILY BEAST
She was out of the cell before it hit the backstop and following me down the hall towards her brother's room.
Highways in Hiding|George Oliver Smith
Each time one sailed away over the backstop, it was like the pop of a safety-valve; it averted an explosion.
The Voice in the Fog|Harold MacGrath
The backstop was built up of earth and was soft enough so that the pins would not splinter on striking it.
Castle of Terror|E.J. Liston
He began to turn its center dial, at first a quarter circle, and then all the way to the final backstop of the calibration.
The Long Voyage|Carl Richard Jacobi
Finally, the tenth shot smacked against the backstop and he racked his weapon and punched at the target return button.
The Best Made Plans|Everett B. Cole

British Dictionary definitions for backstop

backstop

/ (ˈbækˌstɒp) /

noun

sport a screen or fence to prevent balls leaving the playing area

a block or catch to prevent excessive backward movement, such as one on the sliding seat of a rowing boat

verb -stops, -stopping or -stopped (tr)

US to provide with backing or support

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

backstop

Origin of backstop

OTHER WORDS FROM backstop

Words nearby backstop

Words related to backstop

How to use backstop in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for backstop