playback

1 of 2

noun

play·​back ˈplā-ˌbak 

: an act or instance of reproducing recorded sound or pictures often immediately after recording

play back

2 of 2

verb

played back; playing back; plays back

transitive verb

: to perform a playback of (a usually recently recorded disc or tape)

Examples of playback in a Sentence

Noun

The band listened to a playback of their first recording.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

If the webpage includes a video, Viewer will bring it to the forefront while still giving you access to playback controls (Picture in Picture included). —Brenda Stolyar, WIRED, 21 Jan. 2025

The bottom half of the screen has larger buttons for two-way talk, video playback, and playing a Quick Reply. —PCMAG, 15 Jan. 2025

Verb

Watching this ironic Islamic tale is like seeing our ’60s youth revolution played back as a bizarre Arabian Nights fable. —Armond White, National Review, 22 Jan. 2025

And, as discussed below, vertical lenses like on the iPhone 16 and 16 Pro enable the iPhones to shoot Spatial Video that can be played back on the Vision Pro. —David Phelan, Forbes, 20 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1929, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1949, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

playback

1 of 2 noun

play·​back ˈplā-ˌbak 

: the action of reproducing recorded sound or pictures often immediately after recording

play back

2 of 2 verb

(ˈ)plā-ˈbak

: to perform a playback of (a disc or tape)