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switchback.

A railway track on a steep slope in a zigzag formation, in which a train travels in a reverse direction at each switch.

10 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ˈswɪt͡ʃbæk/Received-Pronunciation/ˈswɪt͡ʃˌbæk/General-American

  1. A railway track on a steep slope in a zigzag formation, in which a train travels in a reverse direction at each switch.

    attributive · figuratively · often

  2. A railway track on which there are steep ascents and descents, a train moving partially or fully by the force of gravity using the momentum generated when descending to travel up an ascending part of the track; especially (UK, dated), such a track built for fun rides at an amusement park; a type of rollercoaster.

    attributive · figuratively · often

  3. A flight path consisting of a series of steep ascents and descents, generally flown as a stunt.

    attributive · broadly · figuratively · often

  4. A path or road having a series of steep ascents and descents.

    UK · attributive · broadly · figuratively · often

  5. A sharp bend in a path or road which causes a traveller to almost reverse their direction of travel, especially one of a series of such bends on an incline; a hairpin bend; also a path or road having such a series of bends.

    Canada · US · attributive · broadly · figuratively · often
Where this word comes from

The noun is derived from switch (“to turn (a train) from one railway track to another using a switch”, verb) + back (“so as to reverse direction and return”, adverb). The verb is derived from the noun.

verb/ˈswɪt͡ʃbæk/Received-Pronunciation/ˈswɪt͡ʃˌbæk/General-American

  1. To take a zigzag course or path.

    attributive · figuratively · intransitive · often
Where this word comes from

The noun is derived from switch (“to turn (a train) from one railway track to another using a switch”, verb) + back (“so as to reverse direction and return”, adverb). The verb is derived from the noun.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.