back up

phraseB22 meaningsNot compared — the two pools are counted one word at a time, so a phrase has no score

To back up is to make a safety copy — or to support somebody's account. Two senses, both about having something in reserve.

The computing sense is now the commonest by far, and the noun backup means the copy itself, which everybody knows they should make and half of them do not. The supporting sense is about testimony, so backing somebody up means confirming what they said. There is a driving sense meaning to reverse, chiefly American, and traffic that backs up has formed a queue.

Definitions of back up

1phraseback upTo make a copy of data for safety.B2
“Remember to back up the whole folder before you start.”
2phrasesupportTo support someone's statement or position.B2
“Two colleagues will back up her version of events.”

Practised in Phrasal Verbs, A Man Called Ove

First appears in chapter 3 of A Man Called Ove.

Practise this word

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back up

phraseB22 meaningsNot compared — the two pools are counted one word at a time, so a phrase has no score

To back up is to make a safety copy — or to support somebody's account. Two senses, both about having something in reserve.

Definitions of back up

1phraseback upTo make a copy of data for safety.B2
“Remember to back up the whole folder before you start.”
2phrasesupportTo support someone's statement or position.B2
“Two colleagues will back up her version of events.”

Practised in Phrasal Verbs, A Man Called Ove

First appears in chapter 3 of A Man Called Ove.

Practise this word