nickelback
/ˈnɪkəlbæk/
nickelback noun: a fifth defensive back (in addition to two cornerbacks and two safeties) who is deployed for additional pass coverage. Also the alternative form of Nickelback.
Noun (1)
nickelback (plural nickelbacks)
- A fifth defensive back (in addition to two cornerbacks and two safeties) who is deployed for additional pass coverage.
Noun (2) capitalized: Nickelback
Nickelback (plural Nickelbacks)
- A peptide with a nitrogen backbone containing two nickel atoms and having 13 amino acids.
Also used as
nickelback is also the alternative form of Nickelback.
Forms of nickelback
| plural | nickelbacks |
|---|---|
| alternative form | nickel back |
| plural | Nickelbacks |
Origin of nickelback
Blend of nickel + cornerback. Modelled on quarterback: both the quarter (“25 cents”) and the nickel (“5 cents”) are American coins, though quarterback was not named for the coin. Coined due to the nickelback's role as the fifth defensive back on the field, thus the connection to the 5-cent nickel.
From nickel + back.
From nickel + back. From having nickel atoms on the backbone structure.
Questions about nickelback
- What does nickelback mean?
- Nickelback means a fifth defensive back (in addition to two cornerbacks and two safeties) who is deployed for additional pass coverage.
- What part of speech is nickelback?
- Nickelback is a noun.
- How do you pronounce nickelback?
- Nickelback is pronounced /ˈnɪkəlbæk/.
- What is the plural of nickelback?
- The plural of nickelback is nickelbacks.
Words near nickelback in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: nickelback (page history and authors); Nickelback (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:
Cite this entry: “nickelback.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/nickelback. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.