backlist

American

[bak-list] / ˈbækˌlɪst /

noun

the books that a publisher has kept in print over several years, as distinguished from newly issued titles.

adjective

Also backlisted. placed or maintained on a backlist.

verb (used with object)

to place on a backlist.

backlist British

/ ˈbækˌlɪst /

noun

a publisher's previously published books that are still available See also front list mid-list

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of backlist

First recorded in 1945–50; back ² + list ¹

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Publishers energetically reprint the interwar backlist; film producers confidently invest in adaptations and pastiches; and genre authors such as Anthony Horowitz and Ruth Ware combine traditional conventions with contemporary sensibilities.

From The Wall Street Journal

That’s how she wound up pitching a “Taylor’s Version”-style rerelease of her backlist to a handful of desired publishers.

From Los Angeles Times

The revised name reflected their mission to publish new titles “at random” to complement the backlist.

From The Wall Street Journal

“They have a backlist of children’s books second to none” — classic works like Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, Tom Swift and the Bobbsey Twins.

From Salon

Though it’s her job to keep abreast of current books, while on a book tour, Patchett gives herself the luxury of reading backlist.

From Seattle Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023