back number


noun

an out-of-date issue of a serial publication.
Informal. anything out-of-date.

Origin of back number

An Americanism dating back to 1805–15

Example sentences from the Web for back number

British Dictionary definitions for back number

back number

noun

an issue of a newspaper, magazine, etc, that appeared on a previous date
informal a person or thing considered to be old-fashioned

Idioms and Phrases with back number

back number

Dated, out of style. For example, That hat is really a back number, or The game has changed so fast that a player who returns to the circuit after several years' absence usually finds he or she is a back number. This term originally referred to back issues of periodicals, which are no longer newsworthy. [Late 1800s]