touchback

[ tuhch-bak ]

/ ˈtʌtʃˌbæk /

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noun Football.

a play in which the ball is downed after having been kicked into the end zone by the opposing team or having been recovered or intercepted there, or in which it has been kicked beyond the end zone.Compare safety (def. 6a).

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Origin of touchback

First recorded in 1885–90; touch + back²

Words nearby touchback

totty, toucan, toucanet, touch, touch and go, touchback, touch base with, touch bottom, touchdown, touché, touched

How to use touchback in a sentence

In 2012, college football moved the kickoff line forward from the 30-yard line to the 35 and the touchback line from the 20-yard line to the 25, encouraging teams to take touchbacks and avoid some of those collisions.
Why Are We Still Returning Kicks In College Football?|Jake Lourim|December 11, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
Burrow fumbled and Ronald Darby recovered in the end zone for Washington, resulting in a touchback.
Hail or Fail: Antonio Gibson continues TD tear, Chase Young excited for Cowboys on Thanksgiving|Scott Allen|November 23, 2020|Washington Post
The other, to his immediate left, is calling for a touchback, the result of an interception.
The NFL Replacement Referees’ 6 Worst Blown Calls (VIDEO)|Jake Heller|September 26, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Carmine finally fell on the ball for a touchback and the excitement in the stands subsided.
Left Guard Gilbert|Ralph Henry Barbour

But the Boxford boy was on the ball and had scored a touchback!
Deering of Deal|Latta Griswold
She punted on the next down and Stone misjudged the ball and followed it across the line for a touchback.
Quarter-Back Bates|Ralph Henry Barbour
He might have played it safe by taking it over the line for a touchback, but the idea didnt occur to him.
Center Rush Rowland|Ralph Henry Barbour

British Dictionary definitions for touchback

touchback

/ (ˈtʌtʃˌbæk) /

noun

American football a play in which the ball is put down by a player behind his own goal line when the ball has been put across the goal line by an opponentCompare safety (def. 4b)

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