- a quick, sharp recoil
- any sudden or violent reaction; specif., strong political or social reaction resulting from fear or resentment of a movement, candidate, etc.
- a snarl in a reeled fishing line, resulting from an imperfect cast
- the jarring reaction of loose or worn parts; also, the play in these parts
noun
- The definition of backlash is an intense or sudden reaction.
If the response of the public to the politicians' actions was to stage huge protests, then that would be an example of a backlash.
- Backlash is defined as a quick, strong backward movement.
A gun that snaps back when it is fired is an example of a backlash.
YourDictionary definition and usage example. Copyright © 2018 by LoveToKnow Corp
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"backlash." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 23 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Backlash>.
APA Style
backlash. (n.d.). Retrieved January 23rd, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Backlash
backlash
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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MLA Style
"backlash." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 23 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Backlash>.
APA Style
backlash. (n.d.). Retrieved January 23rd, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Backlash
backlash
noun
- A sudden or violent backward whipping motion.
- An antagonistic reaction to a trend, development, or event: “As the backlash against divorce progressed, state legislatures … called for a rollback of no-fault divorce laws and even for premarital waiting periods” ( Walter Kirn )
- A snarl formed in the part of a fishing line that is wound around the reel.
- The play resulting from loose connections between gears or other mechanical elements.
Related Forms:
- back′lash′
verb
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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MLA Style
"backlash." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 23 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Backlash>.
APA Style
backlash. (n.d.). Retrieved January 23rd, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Backlash
Noun
(plural backlashes)
- A sudden backward motion.
- A reaction, objection or outcry, especially of a violent or abrupt nature.
- The public backlash to the proposal was quick and insistent.
- (mechanics) The distance through which one part of connected machinery, as a wheel, piston, or screw, can be moved without moving the connected parts, resulting from looseness in fitting or from wear.
- The jarring or reflex motion caused in badly fitting machinery by irregularities in velocity or a reverse of motion.
Verb
(third-person singular simple present backlashes, present participle backlashing, simple past and past participle backlashed)
- To cause or set off a backlash.
- (The addition of quotations indicative of this usage is being sought):
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
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Cite this page
MLA Style
"backlash." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 23 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Backlash>.
APA Style
backlash. (n.d.). Retrieved January 23rd, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Backlash
Sentence Examples
- There was an inevitable backlash of incredulity.
- This has generally been regarded as backlash from the "Saturday Night Live" performance, but some maintain that it was just a reaction of her poor singing.
- Since fashion trends have infiltrated the world of children's clothing resulting in designs that may be too adult-like to meet the approval of some parents, there has been some backlash, particularly in more religious communities.
- However, come 1991, fraught by a press backlash against indie-dance and a growing obsession for US grunge acts like Nirvana, Happy Mondays staged a half-arsed return to the charts with mediocre single 'Judge Fudge'.
- The show, as popular as it may be, has received its share of backlash from everyone from Tim Gunn to UNICO, to the entire town of Seaside Heights, where the first season of the show was filmed.
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WORDS NEAR backlash IN THE DICTIONARY
- backlash
- backjumping
- backjumps
- backland