| Compound Forms: |
| Inglés | Español |
| and back expr | (returning) | y volver expr |
| How long does it take to get to Maryland and back? |
| arch of your back n | (curve of lower back) | arco de la espalda nm + loc adj |
| In this yoga pose, tuck your right arm behind the arch of your back. |
| arch your back v expr | (stretch over backwards) | arquear la espalda loc verb |
| Please arch your back and take a deep breath. |
| as far back as prep | (long ago) | desde prep |
| As far back as Cleopatra's time, sugaring has been used as a hair removal technique. |
| El azucarado se ha venido usando como técnica depilatoria desde los tiempos de Cleopatra. |
| as far back as prep | (from a point in the past) | alrededor de loc prep |
| These cave paintings are believed to date as far back as 17,000 years. |
| Se cree que estas pinturas rupestres tienen alrededor de 17.000 años. |
| ask [sth] back vtr + adv | (pose question in return) | responder con otra pregunta loc verb |
| hacer otra pregunta loc verb |
| Audrey asked me a question, but I wasn't sure what she meant, so I asked her a question back. |
| at the back adv | (in, towards the rear) | al fondo loc adv |
| atrás adv |
| We went to the cinema and sat at the back. |
| Fuimos al cine y nos sentamos al fondo. |
| back and forth adv | (move: to and fro) | de acá para allá loc adv |
| de un lado para otro loc adv |
| The little girl rocked back and forth on the swing. |
| La pequeña niña se hamacaba de acá para allá en el columpio. |
back and forth,
back-and-forth adj | (movement: to and fro) | de acá para allá loc adv |
| de un lado para otro loc adv |
| (coloquial) | vaivén nm |
| ir y venir loc nom m |
| Note: Hyphens are used when the term is an adjective. |
| It is relaxing to sit on the beach and watch the back-and-forth motion of the waves. |
| Es muy relajante sentarse en la playa a ver las olas moverse de acá para allá. |
| Es muy relajante sentarse en la playa a ver el vaivén de las olas. |
| Es muy relajante sentarse en la playa a ver el ir y venir de las olas. |
back and forth,
back-and-forth n | informal (conversation) (coloquial) | cuchicheo nm |
| Rebecca could hear the back and forth of a conversation outside her window. |
| Rebeca podía escuchar el cuchicheo de una conversación fuera de su ventana. |
| back bacon | (foodstuff) | lomo de tocino nm + loc adj |
| back bench n | UK (Parliament: junior members) | legislador junior, legisladora junior nm, nf + adj |
| Note: A hyphen is used when the term is an adjective |
| back-bench n as adj | UK (Parliament: junior) | de legisladores junior loc adj |
| back cover n | (book: rear outer part) | cubierta posterior nf + adj mf |
| contraportada nf |
| (AmL) | contratapa nf |
| The back cover had a brief description of the story. |
| Había una breve descripción de la historia en la cubierta posterior. |
| back door n | (building: rear door) | puerta trasera nf + adj |
| In this house the back door opens directly into the kitchen. |
| En esta casa, la puerta trasera da directamente a la cocina. |
| puerta de atrás nf + loc adj |
| En esta casa, la puerta de atrás da directamente a la cocina. |
| back end n | (rear part) | parte trasera nf + adj |
| He cruelly likened her appearance to the back end of a bus! |
| Con crueldad comparó su apariencia con la parte trasera de un autobús. |
| back end n | (software: data access layer) (voz inglesa) | backend, back end nm |
| modo administrador loc nom m |
| motor nm |
| As a developer, Tim works on the back end of this web app. |
| back fat n | (excess fat on back) | grasa en la espalda nf + loc adv |
| back formation n | (linguistics: word creation method) (Lingüística) | derivación regresiva loc nom f |
| back home adv | informal (in your town or country of origin) (con pronombre) | en casa loc adv |
| en tierra loc adv |
| Doris missed her life back home in Australia. |
| Doris extrañaba la vida en su casa en Australia. |
| back home adv | (to your house again) (literal) | de nuevo en casa loc adv |
| de vuelta a casa loc adv |
| Steve drove us back home after the party. |
| Esteban nos dejó de nuevo en casa al terminar la fiesta. |
| back in action adj | informal (functioning or performing again) | en marcha de nuevo loc adv |
| The doctor said I will be back in action in a few days, as soon as the scarring heals. |
| El médico dijo que estaría en marcha de nuevo en unos pocos días, tan pronto como cicatrice la herida. |
| back in action adj | figurative, informal (at work again) (informal) | de vuelta al tajo loc adv |
| After being away so long, we are all happy to see her back in action. |
| de vuelta al trabajo loc adv |
| (figurado, familiar) | de nuevo al ruedo loc adv |
| ⓘEsta oración no es una traducción de la original. Maña se terminan las vacaciones y de nuevo al ruedo. |
| back in the day expr | (introduces reminiscence) | en aquellos tiempos expr |
| por aquellos días expr |
| Back in the day, we only had a handful of TV channels. |
| back in the saddle adv | figurative, informal (at work again) | de regreso al jale loc adv |
| It felt good to be back in the saddle after three months of sick leave. |
| Estuvo bueno estar de regreso al jale después de tres meses de licencia por enfermedad. |
| (figurado, coloquial) | de nuevo a la lucha loc adv |
| Estuvo bueno volver de nuevo a la lucha después de tres meses de licencia por enfermedad. |
| back into [sth] vi + prep | (enter by reversing) | entrar marcha atrás loc verb |
| Jeff looked into the rear-view mirror as he backed into the parking space. |
| Jeff miró por el espejo retrovisor para entrar marcha atrás en el lugar para estacionar. |
| back [sth] into [sth] vtr + prep | (vehicle: reverse into) | entrar algo en reversa loc verb |
| entrar algo en marcha atrás loc verb |
| My wife always has trouble backing the car into the driveway. |
| Mi esposa siempre tiene problemas entrando el coche en reversa hasta la calzada. |
| back into [sth/sb] vi + prep | (hit by reversing) | chocar marcha atrás loc verb |
| He wasn't paying attention and backed into the bollard. |
| No estaba prestando atención y chocó marcha atrás contra el bolardo. |
| back [sth] into [sth/sb] vtr + prep | (vehicle: hit while reversing) | chocar algo marcha atrás contra loc verb |
| Matt accidentally backed his car into a lamppost. |
back issue,
back number n | (magazine, etc.: earlier issue) | número anterior nm + adj |
| back judge n | (American football referee) | árbitro de fondo loc nom mf |
back line,
backline n | (sport: defensive players) | defensor, defensora nm, nf |
| The back line stopped the other team from scoring. |
| El defensor evitó que el otro equipo hiciera un gol. |
back line,
backline n | (sport: line on field) | línea de fondo loc nom f |
| The ball crossed the back line before the player could reach it. |
| backline n | (equipment: amplification) | amplificadores nmpl |
| The backline was at the back of the stage, ready for the musicians. |
| Los amplificadores estaban al fondo del escenario, esperando a los músicos. |
| back lot | (outdoor area) | lote de atrás nm + loc adj |
back matter,
end matter n | (publishing) | paratexto final nm + adj mf |
| back number n | (out-of-date issue of magazine etc.) | número atrasado nm + adj |
| ejemplar atrasado nm + loc adj |
| (VE) | periódico de ayer nm + loc adj |
| back number n | (anything out-of-date) | número atrasado nm + adj |
at the back of your mind,
in the back of your mind expr | (in background thought processes) | estar pendiente de expr |
| Back off! interj | (move away from me) | atrás interj |
| (tú) | aléjate interj |
| (vos) | alejate interj |
| Back off! Don't touch me! |
| ¡Atrás! ¡No me toques! |
| Back off! interj | (stop harassing me) | basta interj |
| no me molestes loc interj |
| deja de molestarme loc interj |
| Back off, Dad! I'll do my homework later! |
| ¡Basta papá! Haré la tarea más tarde. |
| back office n | (administrative department) | trastienda del negocio nf + loc adj |
| All the staff from the back office are going to the pub – do you want to come? |
| Todo el personal de la trastienda del negocio va a ir al pub, ¿quieres venir? |
| parte administrativa nf + adj |
| Todo el personal de la parte administrativa va a ir al pub, ¿quieres venir? |
| back order n | (order for [sth] out of stock) | pedido pendiente nm + adj mf |
| If your item is not in stock, the company will place a back order for you. |
| Si el artículo está agotado, la empresa puede hacer un pedido pendiente. |
| back page n | often plural (final page of a publication) | contraportada nf |
| contratapa nf |
| back-page n as adj | sometimes figurative (fit for newspaper's last pages) | de contratapa expr |
| back pay n | (law: wages for previous work) | pago retroactivo nm + adj |
| pago de atrasos salariales nm + loc adj |
| pago de atrasos nm + loc adj |
| The court has ordered that Mr Smith's former employer pay him £20,000 in back pay. |
| back pressure n | (force going against flow) | resistencia nf |
| An obstruction in the water pipe was causing back pressure. |
| Una obstrucción en la cañería estaba causando resistencia. |
| back projection | (photography) | retroproyección nf |
| back rent n | (law: money owed to landlord) | alquiler atrasado nm + adj |
| back road n | (not a main route) | camino interno nm + adj |
| calle interna nf + adj |
| camino alternativo nm + adj |
| They got lost somewhere in the back roads of Devon. |
| Se perdieron en los caminos internos de Devon. |
| back rub n | (massage) | masaje nm |
back seat,
backseat n | (seat at back of a vehicle) | asiento de atrás nm + loc adj |
| asiento trasero nm + adj |
| Note: The two-word form is more common. |
| Children under 12 should sit in the back seat of a vehicle. |
back shift,
backshift n | (work period: afternoon, evening) | turno tarde nm + adj |
the back shift,
the backshift npl | (afternoon, evening workers) | trabajador de turno tarde nm + loc adj |
| back slang n | (backwards spelling) | jerga invertida nf + adj |
| back straight n | (part of a racecourse, track) | recta nf |
| back street n | (minor street) | calle secundaria nf + adj |
| calle lateral nf + adj |
| back the wrong horse v expr | figurative (be mistaken in judgment) (figurado) | apostar por el caballo perdedor expr |
| equivocarse⇒ v prnl |
| (coloquial) | pifiarle v prnl |
| back then adv | (in those days) | entonces adv |
| Back then most people didn't even have cell phones. |
| Entonces, la mayoría de las personas no tenían ni siquiera teléfonos móviles. |
| en aquella época loc adv |
| En aquella época, la mayoría de las personas no tenían ni siquiera teléfonos móviles. |
| (ES, coloquial) | de aquella adv |
| De aquella, la mayoría de las personas no tenían ni siquiera teléfonos móviles. |
| (arcaico, desusado) | otrora adv |
| Otrora, la mayoría de las personas no tenían ni siquiera teléfonos móviles. |
| antiguamente adv |
| Antiguamente, la mayoría de las personas no tenían ni siquiera teléfonos móviles. |
| back to back adv | (with backs together) | espalda contra espalda loc adv |
| Stand back to back so I can see who is taller. |
| Párense espalda contra espalda para ver quién es más alto. |
back to back,
back-to-back adj | figurative (consecutive) | seguido/a adj |
| consecutivo/a adj |
| sucesivo/a adj |
| Note: A hyphen is used when the adjective precedes the noun. |
| The team was able to win back-to-back games for the first time in a month. |
| El equipo pudo ganar partidos seguidos por primera vez en meses. |
| back to front adv | (clothing: wrong way around) | al revés loc adv |
| back to front adv | figurative (completely, thoroughly) | de principio a fin loc prep |
| (coloquial, figurado) | de pé a pá expr |
| I've read this book so many times that I know it back to front. |
| back to normal adv | (reverting to usual state) | de vuelta a la normalidad loc adv |
| In television, at the end of an episode usually everything goes back to normal. |
| En televisión, al final de un episodio generalmente todo está de vuelta a la normalidad. |
| back to school expr | (return to school after vacation) | regreso a clases expr |
| de vuelta al colegio expr |
| The sign above the supermarket shelf laden with books and stationery read "Back to school". |
| El letrero sobre la góndola de supermercado lleno de libros y artículos de librería decía "regreso a clases". |
| back-to-school adj | (relating to return to school) (coloquial) | de vuelta al cole expr |
| de vuelta a clases expr |
| Note: Hyphens are used when the term is an adjective. |
| We like to buy our children's clothes at back-to-school sales, when the prices are low. |
| Nos gusta comprar la ropa de nuestros hijos en las ofertas de vuelta al cole, cuando los precios son más bajos. |
| back to the drawing board adv | figurative, informal (starting over) | empezar de cero loc verb |
| volver al punto de partida loc verb |
