Backscratch
noun, verb, slang ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
- 1 A scratch on the back.
"Several Colorado papers have reproduced the substance of our articles on silver, and we thank them for their backscratches."
- 1 To scratch one's or another's back.
"That thought appeared to discompose her greatly, though Jasper made light of it by rapidly back-scratching with his hind legs and giving a short stern bark, just to assure her that strangers would be rushed off the property on sight."
- 2 To engage in a reciprocal beneficial action. slang
"It was backscratched into existence, cost nearly a billion pounds, and now they are wondering why they let it happen."
Example
More examples"Several Colorado papers have reproduced the substance of our articles on silver, and we thank them for their backscratches."
Etymology
From back + scratch.
More for "backscratch"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.