runbackn.
/ˈrʌnbak/, U.S. /ˈrənˌbæk/ 1. Tennis. The additional space behind the baseline at either end of the court.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > racket games > lawn tennis > [noun] > court > parts of
baseline1875
centreline1882
runback1891
alley1904
cover1907
no man's land1931
tramline1937
ad court1946
1891 Wright & Ditson's Lawn Tennis Guide for 1891 191 Ample space has been allowed, there being twenty feet between courts, twenty feet on the sides, and a runback of twenty-five feet.
1908 A. W. Myers Compl. Lawn Tennis Player 213 At Auteuil..the run-back is inadequate and the timbered roof too low.
1977 Club Tennis Mar. 15 A size of 33.53m × 16.46m (110ft × 54ft) which gives a 4.88m (16ft) run back is entirely adequate for the average home player.
2000 Vancouver Sun (Nexis) 2 May f5 The project involves..a repositioning of the fences to accommodate the regulation 21-foot runbacks.
2.
a. The action or an act of running back or backwards.
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society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance in a vehicle > movement of vehicles > [noun] > backward movement
runback1897
back-up1900
1897 News & Observer (Raleigh, N. Carolina) 11 Apr. 9/6 The fire of the enemy in front increased, and a ‘run back’ by the brigade was the consequence.
1926 Brit. Standard Gloss. Terms Electr. Engin. (Brit. Engin. Standards Assoc.) 140 Runback preventer, a system of connection in a tramcar controller such that, in the event of the car running backwards, the motors act as short-circuited generators and thus exert a braking action.
1973 P. Dickinson Green Gene ii. 41 He wanted to see whether any usable figures were available for..the mid-nineteenth century, enough at least for him to construct a crude model and attempt a run-back.
2005 M. C. McMaster LC/MS ii. 10 The outlet check valve closes to prevent runback of pressurized solvent from the injector line.
b. American Football. A run made to advance a ball received after a change of possession, esp. a ball caught after a kick-off or punt.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > American football > [noun] > actions or manoeuvres
rush1857
punt-out1861
goal-kicking1871
safety1879
safety touchdown1879
scrimmage1880
rushing1882
safety touch1884
touchback1884
forward pass1890
run1890
blocking1891
signal1891
fake1893
onside kick1895
tandem-play1895
pass play1896
spiral1896
shift1901
end run1902
straight-arm1903
quarterback sneak1904
runback1905
roughing1906
Minnesota shift1910
quarterbacking1910
snap-back1910
pickoff1912
punt return1914
screen forward pass1915
screen pass1920
power play1921
sneak1921
passback1922
snap1922
defence1923
reverse1924
carry1927
lateral1927
stiff-arm1927
zone1927
zone defence1927
submarine charge1928
squib1929
block1931
pass rushing1933
safetying1933
trap play1933
end-around1934
straight-arming1934
trap1935
mousetrap1936
buttonhook1938
blitzing1940
hand-off1940
pitchout1946
slant1947
strike1947
draw play1948
shovel pass1948
bootleg1949
option1950
red dog1950
red-dogging1951
rollout1951
submarine1952
sleeper pass1954
draw1956
bomb1960
swing pass1960
pass rush1962
blitz1963
spearing1964
onsides kick1965
takeaway1967
quarterback sack1968
smash-mouth1968
veer1968
turn-over1969
bump-and-run1970
scramble1971
sack1972
nose tackle1975
nickel1979
pressure1981
1905 Lincoln (Nebraska) Evening News 20 Nov. 13/3 The booting put the ball on the Cornhusker's 5-yard line where it was started for a runback of eighteen yards.
1949 Lafayette Alumnus (Lafayette Coll., Easton, Pa.) 24 Oct. 1/2 Winston Williams was outkicking Delaware's Smith and the Maroon had a slight edge on runbacks.
1971 L. Koppett N.Y. Times Guide Spectator Sports ii. 59 The receiving team can attempt a ‘runback’ at any time, even after a fumble.
2007 T. Barber et al. Kickoff! xiii. 147 That was one of the best runbacks I've seen in all my years at Hidden Valley.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2011; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1891