Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary полностью

14 PHRASE If you are wearing something back to front , you are wearing it with the back of it at the front of your body. If you do something back to front , you do it the wrong way around, starting with the part that should come last. [mainly BRIT ] □  He wears his baseball cap back to front. □  The picture was printed back to front. in AM, use backward

15 PHRASE If you say that one thing happens on the back of another thing, you mean that it happens after that other thing and in addition to it. □  The cuts, if approved, come on the back of a difficult eight years that have seen three fire stations closed.

16 PHRASE If someone is on the back foot , or if something puts them on the back foot , they feel threatened and act defensively. □  From now on, Labour will be on the back foot on the subject of welfare. □  I thought it would knock my confidence and put me on the back foot.

17 PHRASE If someone or something puts your back up or gets your back up , they annoy you. [INFORMAL ] □  Some food labelling practices really get my back up.

18to take a back seat → see seat

➌ back ◆◆◆ /bæ k/ (backs , backing , backed )

1 VERB If a building backs onto something, the back of it faces in the direction of that thing or touches the edge of that thing. □ [V + onto ] We live in a ground floor flat which backs onto a busy street. □ [V + onto ] His garden backs onto a school.

2 VERB When you back a car or other vehicle somewhere or when it backs somewhere, it moves backwards. □ [V n prep/adv] He backed his car out of the drive. □ [V ] I heard the engines revving as the lorries backed and turned.

3 VERB If you back a person or a course of action, you support them, for example by voting for them or giving them money. □ [V n] There is a new witness to back his claim that he is a victim of mistaken identity. ●  -backed COMB □  …government-backed loans to Egypt.

4 VERB If you back a particular person, team, or horse in a competition, you predict that they will win, and usually you bet money that they will win. □ [V n to-inf] He was heavily backed to win two Majors. □ [V n] It is upsetting to discover that you have backed a loser.

5 VERB [usu passive] If a singer is backed by a band or by other singers, they provide the musical background for the singer. □ [be V -ed + by ] She was backed by acoustic guitar, bass and congas.

6 → see also backing

▸  back away

1 PHRASAL VERB If you back away from a commitment that you made or something that you were involved with in the past, you try to show that you are no longer committed to it or involved with it. □ [V P + from ] The company backed away from plans to cut their pay by 15%. □ [V P ] Until yesterday, Britain had backed away because it didn't like the cost.

2 PHRASAL VERB If you back away , you walk backwards away from someone or something, often because you are frightened of them. □ [V P ] James got to his feet and started to come over, but the girls hastily backed away. [Also V P + from ]

▸  back down PHRASAL VERB If you back down , you withdraw a claim, demand, or commitment that you made earlier, because other people are strongly opposed to it. □ [V P ] It's too late to back down now. □ [V P + on/over ] He had to back down on plans to backdate the tax changes.

▸  back off

1 PHRASAL VERB If you back off , you move away in order to avoid problems or a fight. □ [V P ] They backed off in horror.