backhander
noun
backhander is spelled B-A-C-K-H-A-N-D-E-R: 10 letters. It appears about once in every 31 million words in written English, the 169,822nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, backhander means “A glass of wine given out of turn, the bottle having been handed backwards” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of backhander is backhanders.
How many letters and syllables are in backhander?
| Letters | 10: B-A-C-K-H-A-N-D-E-R |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 31 million words; the 169,822nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is backhander?
Backhander appears about once in every 31 million words in written English, the 169,822nd 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 backhander?
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-backhander.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of backhander
- backhanders plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does backhander mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A glass of wine given out of turn, the bottle having been handed backwards.
- 2
A blow with the back of the hand; a blow delivered with a swing of the arm across the chest.
- 3
informalA bribe, a secret payment.
- 4
A shot played backhand, a backhand stroke.
- 5
A player who plays a backhand shot.
She's a terrific backhander.
- 6
A surfer who approaches a swell with the wave behind them ("on their backhand") rather than facing the wave ("on their forehand").
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Backhander in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Schlag mit dem Handrücken , Schmiergeld, Bestechungsgeld, Bakschisch, heimliche Zahlung , Rückhandschlag |
| Spanish | torniscón, anapoda , soborno |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does backhander come from?
From backhand + -er (patient suffix) or -er (agent noun suffix).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).