Backoff

noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The situation where an algorithm or process refrains from taking an action it would otherwise have taken. countable, uncountable

    "a backoff strategy to avoid collisions"

  2. 2
    The situation where an incoming wave passes from shallower water to a deeper area, making the wave less steep and potentially unsurfable. countable, uncountable

    "The surfer is in the middle of a backoff. Paddle for unbroken waves butterfly-style, with both arms at the same time, instead of using the crawl stroke that got you out to where the waves are breaking."

Example

More examples

"a backoff strategy to avoid collisions"

Etymology

Deverbal from back off.

More for "backoff"

SynonymsSentencesPronunciationTranslate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonymsSee usage examplesCheck pronunciationBrowse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.