back number

noun

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 an out-of-date issue of a serial publication.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 anything out-of-date.

back number

noun

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of back number¹

An Americanism dating back to 1805–15

Idioms and Phrases

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]

Example Sentences

“The adults are being sent back, number one.”

From Washington Post

Take Castro, who said the Marlins’ “games back” number and the things written about them don’t bother him: “I don’t have to put it in my mind, because I can’t control the situation.”

From Washington Post

And the other was a totally unexpected spoiler from new cast member Anson Mount, who plays Pike: the new season would also do a bit of necessary retconning and bring back Number One, the female second-in-command from the original Star Trek pilot whose role was scrapped by the studios in favor of Leonard Nimoy’s Spock because 1960s Hollywood was sexist as hell.

From The Verge

“Get his strength back, number one, and then we’ll go from there.”

From Washington Post

Third, 911 public awareness campaigns should align expectations between callers and call-takers as to the types of questions callers will face when reporting suspicious activity, including asking for the caller’s name and call back number to ensure greater accountability.

From Washington Post

Related Words

• age-old
• antique
• archaic
• hoary
• old-fashioned
• timeworn
• venerable