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Glite Dictionary
back channel

back channel

4 7.7
A secret way to talk privately between governments or leaders
  • noun
  • /bæk ˈtʃænəl/
  • Literature
translation icon : canal secreto
  • The team negotiated a deal through a secret back channel to prevent any leaks to the media.
  • a secret back channel
  • establish a back channel
  • use a back channel

I got Nat through a back channel, read it.

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Examples

  • When tensions rose, they communicated through back channels to avoid escalating the situation.

  • The British government maintained a secret back channel to the Irish Republican Army even after the IRA had launched a mortar attack on 10 Downing Street that nearly eliminated the entire British cabinet in 1991.

    Academic text (2007)

  • We employ a back channel.

    Thirteen Days (2000)

  • Or is this another case of secret back channel agreements?"

    Blog text (4)

  • According to the report, Washington has used covert back channels in Europe to clarify that the US does not intend to back Israel in a strike that may spark a regional conflict.

    Blog text (9)

  • Diplomats often use a back channel to discuss sensitive issues without drawing public attention.

Synonyms

channel
vsback channel
230 3.6

An official way to send information

is an unofficial private route used for secret negotiation rather than formal systems
backchannel
vsback channel
2 7.2

A private chat people use during a meeting to talk without others hearing

is more secret and used for private negotiations in diplomacy

How Official

channel
230 3.6
back channel
  • Literature
4 7.7

Surface Forms

back channel singular
back channels plural

Morphology

back + channel

The constituent 'channel' (a route or medium for messages) plus 'back' (literally 'at the rear' or 'behind') provide a clear clue to an unofficial or behind-the-scenes means of communication, so part of the meaning is derivable. However, the shift from the spatial sense of 'back' to the pragmatic sense 'secret/behind-the-scenes' is metaphorical and relies on world knowledge about covert communication, so a B1 learner who only knows the basic senses may not fully infer the idiomatic nuance.

Etymology

The noun back channel comes from a simple image: back means 'behind' and channel means 'a narrow passage for messages or goods'. People used hidden routes to meet or send messages quietly, so today a back channel is 'a secret or unofficial way to communicate'.