Word.ws English Dictionary

backdate

UK/bækˈdeɪt//ˈbæk.deɪt/

backdate verb: to give or assign a date to a document that is earlier than the current or true date.

Verb

backdate (third-person singular simple present backdates, present participle backdating, simple past and past participle backdated)

  1. To give or assign a date to a document that is earlier than the current or true date.

Noun

backdate (plural backdates)

  1. An assigned date that is earlier than the current or true date.
    • The backdates on the clearance forms made the little man's papers worthless […]2000, Jack Stewart, Hurricane, page 50

Synonyms of backdate

Antonyms

Forms of backdate

Verb
third-person singular presentbackdates
present participlebackdating
past participlebackdated
pastbackdated
alternative formback-date
alternative formback date
Noun
pluralbackdates

Origin of backdate

From back + date.

Words formed from backdate

Words that rhyme with backdate

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about backdate

What does backdate mean?
Backdate means to give or assign a date to a document that is earlier than the current or true date.
What part of speech is backdate?
Backdate can be a verb or a noun.
How do you pronounce backdate?
Backdate is pronounced /bækˈdeɪt/ (UK).
What is the past tense of backdate?
The past tense of backdate is backdated.

Words near backdate in the dictionary

  1. backcrossings
  2. backdam
  3. backdams
  4. backdash
  5. backdashes
  6. backdate
  7. backdated
  8. backdatedly
  9. backdater
  10. backdaters
  11. backdates

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: backdate (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-backdate.wav.

Cite this entry: “backdate.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/backdate. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.