- something in reserve that one can turn to for help
- a withdrawing; retreat
noun
- If a government calls its army to retreat from attacking an enemy fort, this is an example of a fallback.
- If you want to go to Harvard but you also apply to Georgetown in case you do not get into Harvard, Georgetown is an example of a fallback.
The definition of a fallback is a retreat of a military action, or a backup plan.
YourDictionary definition and usage example. Copyright © 2018 by LoveToKnow Corp
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"fallback." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/fallback>.
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fallback. (n.d.). Retrieved December 09th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/fallback
fallback
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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"fallback." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/fallback>.
APA Style
fallback. (n.d.). Retrieved December 09th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/fallback
fallback
noun
- a. Something to which one can resort or retreat: applied to another college as a fallback.b. A retreat: The colonel ordered a fallback to the woods.
- Something that falls back: the fallback of debris from the explosion.
Related Forms:
- fall′back′
adjective
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
"fallback." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/fallback>.
APA Style
fallback. (n.d.). Retrieved December 09th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/fallback
Noun
(plural fallbacks)
- An act of falling back.
- A backup plan or contingency strategy; an alternative which can be used if something goes wrong with the main plan; a recourse.
- As a fallback, I suppose we can use typewriters if the word processing system fails.
- (construction) A reduction in bitumen softening point, sometimes called refluxing or overheating in a relatively closed container.
Adjective
(not comparable)
- That can be resorted to as a fallback.
- a fallback plan
Origin
From the verb fall back.
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
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Cite this page
MLA Style
"fallback." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/fallback>.
APA Style
fallback. (n.d.). Retrieved December 09th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/fallback
Sentence Examples
- Since the 9th grade, Maybelline eye shadow has been my fallback cosmetic when I want to look fabulous without the anxiety of trying a new product right before a big event.
- And of course there is always the old board game fallback or room décor if your tween wants to stage their own mini extreme home makeover.