backspace

1. 1.

   the typewriter key used for back spacing

   Synonymsbackspace keybackspacer

   Broaderkey

   Part oftypewriter keyboard

1. 1.

   hit the backspace key on a computer or typewriter keyboard

   “To erase, you must backspace”

   Broadertype

Other forms of backspace

plural

backspaces·

past tense

backspaced·

present participle

backspacing·

Forms marked · are formed by the regular rule rather than recorded in the source data. English keeps a few hundred irregulars and the rest follow the pattern, so the rule is right far more often than not — but it is a rule, and the mark says so.

Questions about backspace

What does backspace mean?

backspace means "the typewriter key used for back spacing". That is the primary sense; the word has 2 in total, listed in full on this page.

How many syllables are in backspace?

backspace has 2 syllables: back-space. The stress falls on "back".

What is another word for backspace?

Close synonyms include backspace key, backspacer. Each sense on this page lists its own synonyms, because a word with several meanings rarely has one substitute that works for all of them.

Is backspace a common word?

backspace is banded "Rare" — specialist or archaic — most readers will not have met it. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.