fall back on

Idioms  

1. Also, fall back upon. Rely on, have recourse to, as in I fall back on old friends in time of need, or When he lost his job he had to fall back upon his savings. [Mid-1800s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fall back on

Newcastle hardly had a stellar season themselves - finishing a disappointing 12th place - but the difference is Spurs have greater revenues to fall back on as they try to bounce back come August.

From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026

When imagination fails, the boys fall back on “formats”—copy-and-paste scripts traded online and passed phone to phone.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026

And now, when Smith doesn’t get a call, he has ABS to fall back on.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026

You can’t fall back on that money in an emergency like you could with a retirement account.

From Barron's ● May 28, 2026

So I fall back on the support networks of my real-life social class, call the dermatologist I know in Key West, and bludgeon him into prescribing something sight unseen.

From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich