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• back to back
  back to back

  adverb

  (of two similar events) following one immediately after the other; in unbroken sequence; consecutively.
• back-to-back
  back-to-back

  adjective

  facing in opposite directions, often with the backs touching

back to back

American  

adverb

1. (of two similar events) following one immediately after the other; in unbroken sequence; consecutively.

   After losing all day, he picked winners back to back in the last two races.

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adjective

1. adjacent or contiguous but oppositely oriented; having the backs close together or adjoining.

   The seats in the day coach are back to back.

2. Stud Poker. (of a pair) consisting of the hole card and the first upcard.

   He had aces back to back.

back-to-back British  

adjective

1. facing in opposite directions, often with the backs touching

2. (of urban houses) built so that their backs are joined or separated only by a narrow alley

3. informal consecutive

4. commerce

   1. denoting a credit arrangement in which a finance house acts as an intermediary to conceal the identity of the seller from the buyer

   2. denoting a loan from one company to another in a different country using a finance house to provide the loan but not the funding

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noun

1. a house or terrace built in back-to-back style

back to back Idioms  

1. With backs close together or touching, as in In the first and second rows of the bus, the seats were back to back, an unusual arrangement . This term also can be applied to persons who stand facing in opposite directions and with their backs touching. [Mid-1800s]

2. Consecutively, one after another, as in I'm exhausted; I had three meetings back to back . [Mid-1900s]

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Etymology

Origin of back to back

First recorded in 1450–1500

Explanation

Back-to-back things come right after each other. Two back-to-back baseball games are played in a row. Back-to-back has been used to describe houses that are literally back-to-back with no separation. These days, back-to-back events happen consecutively. A baseball player with back-to-back home runs hit two in a row. A President with back-to-back victories won two elections in a row. There's no separation between back-to-back things, like how if your back was pressed against someone else’s back, nothing could fit in between. Sometimes people use the term back-to-back-to-back for things that happen three times in a row.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

back to back back-to-back

This club has won back to back NFC Easts and delivered a title just two seasons ago, but remains dogged by underachiever vibes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

“You have to understand camera composition, which shots are changed. Like you can’t have two close-ups back to back, you have to start with an establishing shot,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026

Try doing it for six shows back to back.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026

Hampshire have three more back to back - starting at home to Glamorgan on Friday - before England's first Test of the summer.

From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2026

They each slept on their own side of the bed, back to back.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende

The June to August season was defined by severe, back-to-back heatwaves that shut schools, dried up rivers and primed the land for devastating wildfires.

From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026

In May, he appeared as Anne Hathaway’s new love interest in the summer blockbuster “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” and this week he headlines not one, but two television series premiering on back-to-back days.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

But the mood has shifted from the euphoria that felt tangible when the Nasdaq was notching back-to-back records early this summer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

Market participants are eyeing potential back-to-back Bank of Japan interest-rate increases in September and October, following hawkish remarks from board member Hajime Takata last week, she says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026

The three of them scrambled to the center of the boat, standing back-to-back, staring around for the source of the voice.

From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton

Related Words

• later