back channel

American  

[bak chan-l] / ˈbæk ˌtʃæn l /

Or backchannel

noun

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

   sensitive information passed on through a back channel.

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Other Word Forms

• back-channeling
  noun
• back-channel
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of back channel

First recorded in 1965–70

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

back channel

The announcement comes a year after the Slovenian-born former model stunned the world by revealing she had established a back channel of communication with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026

To buttress their argument that an expert cannot be used as a back channel for “inadmissible hearsay,” they pointed to a nonexistent 2021 case brought by the government.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026

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

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 29, 2026

He explained this was not to undermine the British negotiations with the EU, and so he could not be seen a "back channel".

From BBC ● Dec. 14, 2023

The only reason there wasn’t one was because what at high water must have been a very considerable back channel took out at this point and acted as a sort of safety-valve.

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

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