tailback

noun

tail·​back ˈtāl-ˌbak 

1

: the offensive football back farthest from the line of scrimmage

2

British : a line of vehicles caused by a traffic slowdown or stoppage

Synonyms

• backup
• bottleneck
• jam
• jam-up
• logjam
• snarl
• tie-up

Examples of tailback in a Sentence

stuck in a five-mile tailback on the southbound carriageway

Recent Examples on the Web

But the Hotline expects a huge season in Provo with quarterback Jake Retzlaff set to return, along with tailback LJ Martin and a load of impact players on defense. 10. —Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 21 Jan. 2025

But tailback Trevor Etienne, defensive end Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins and guards Dylan Fairchild and Jared Wilson would have been too. —Seth Emerson, The Athletic, 21 Jan. 2025

There are reasons to like certain Eagles matchups, like their excellent secondary against the Chiefs receivers or tailback Saquon Barkley against a KC defense that struggled to stop the run in the AFC Championship against the Buffalo Bills. —Jesse Newell, Kansas City Star, 8 Feb. 2025

As a mentor and sounding board, Faulk could be a coup for CU’s tailbacks. —Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 7 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1930, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for tailback

• aback
• anzac
• attack
• backpack
• backtrack
• bareback
• blackjack
• brownback
• buyback
• callback
• cognac
• comeback