backdate
/ˈbæk.deɪt/verb, noun
backdate is spelled B-A-C-K-D-A-T-E: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 26 million words in written English, the 154,067th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, backdate means “To give or assign a date to a document that is earlier than the current or true date” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in backdate?
| Letters | 8: B-A-C-K-D-A-T-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 26 million words; the 154,067th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is backdate?
Backdate appears about once in every 26 million words in written English, the 154,067th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce backdate?
- UK /bækˈdeɪt/
- US /ˈbæk.deɪt/
Backdate has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Flame,_not_lame-backdate.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of backdate
- backdates present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- backdating participle, present
- backdated participle, past
- back-date
- back date
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does backdate mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To give or assign a date to a document that is earlier than the current or true date.
noun
- 1
An assigned date that is earlier than the current or true date.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does backdate come from?
From back + date.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).