backlash

Definitions

• A sudden backward motion.
• (figurative) A negative reaction, objection or outcry, especially of a violent or abrupt nature.
• (mechanics) The distance through which one part of connected machinery, as a wheel, piston, or screw, can be moved without moving the connected parts, resulting from looseness in fitting or from wear.
• The jarring or reflex motion caused in badly fitting machinery by irregularities in velocity or a reverse of motion.