backlist
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backlist
Where it comes from
From back + list.
noun backlists
-
A list of older books available from a publisher, as opposed to the frontlist of more recent titles.
Similar: back catalog, back catalogue · Opposite: frontlist
-
Expected to achieve years of adequate sales while on a backlist, and to be profitable on that basis, even if predicted not to sell in huge numbers when new.
The celebrity tell-all has been proposed as a frontlist title, whereas the cookbook has been proposed as a backlist title and the food history book as a midlist title.
Opposite: frontlist
verb backlists · backlisting · backlisted
- To hold back a student's application (to a college etc.) based on whether a preferred candidate declines their offer. I have not heard back from the college yet: I must have been backlisted.
- To place (a book) on a backlist.
Talk about this word "backlist." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/backlist. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. backlist. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/backlist "backlist." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/backlist.Cite this
@misc{backlist_2026,
title = {backlist},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/backlist},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
