fallback

[ fawl-bak ]

/ ˈfɔlˌbæk /

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See synonyms for fallback on Thesaurus.com

noun

an act or instance of falling back.

something or someone to turn or return to, especially for help or as an alternative: His teaching experience would be a fallback if the business failed.

adjective

Also fall-back . of or designating something kept in reserve or as an alternative: The negotiators agreed on a fallback position.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of fallback

1750–60, Americanism; noun, adj. use of verb phrase fall back

Words nearby fallback

fall all over oneself, fall among, fall apart, fall asleep, fall away, fallback, fall back on, fall behind, fall between the cracks, fallboard, fall by the wayside

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

How to use fallback in a sentence

Chrome has become the principal browser to write code for while taking care to provide a fallback for unsupported features or sticking entirely to technologies also supported by Safari and Firefox.
News from Google I/O for technical SEO practitioners and site developers|Detlef Johnson|May 26, 2021|Search Engine Land
He then adopted his go-to fallback position of covering his own tail.
Perhaps Tucker Carlson’s data cherry-picking isn’t limited to vaccines|Philip Bump|May 7, 2021|Washington Post
The university is also developing a fallback plan in case Nationals Park becomes unavailable for public health or other reasons.
Georgetown University to hold pandemic commencement at Nationals Park|Nick Anderson|April 22, 2021|Washington Post
Removing a receptor from the next generations of humans could be civilization’s fallback if society is hit with a super-disease that can’t be controlled by vaccines or drugs, and for which we don’t develop immunity.
Gene editing has made pigs immune to a deadly epidemic|Katie McLean|December 11, 2020|MIT Technology Review

Rotisserie or roasted chickenIf you want to stay in the bird family, a good fallback is chicken.
Five better turkey alternatives to serve this Thanksgiving|Claire Maldarelli|November 24, 2020|Popular-Science
He could, as a fallback, partner well with Big Squish-Em, Dis-Em Chris.
Why 2016’s Hopefuls Are Hopeless|P. J. O’Rourke|November 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A fallback position, adding an Eisenhower statue to the existing World War II Memorial, is already being discussed.
The Strange Fight Over the Eisenhower Memorial|Eleanor Clift|September 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Modeling used to be an easy fallback ‘career’ for celebrity kids.
The Famous Parents Modeling Club|Erin Cunningham|May 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
After realizing how difficult this plum post would be, “Biden” writes that he “wised up and settled on my current fallback plan.”
Speed Read: 11 Best Bits from Joe Biden Satire ‘The President of Vice’|Caroline Linton|January 19, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Their fallback is a series of small-bore bills like more visas for high-tech workers.
Bob Shrum’s Winners & Losers of 2012|Robert Shrum|December 14, 2012|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for fallback

fall back

verb (intr, adverb)

to recede or retreat

(foll by on or upon) to have recourse (to)

noun fall-back

a retreat

a reserve, esp money, that can be called upon in need

anything to which one can have recourse as a second choice
(as modifier)a fall-back position

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with fallback

fall back

Give ground, retreat, as in The troops fell back before the relentless enemy assault, or He stuck to his argument, refusing to fall back. [c. 1600]

Recede, as in The waves fell back from the shore. [c. 1800]