kick back

See also: kickback and kick-back

English

Pronunciation

  • Audio (US):(file)

Verb

kick back (third-person singular simple present kicks back, present participle kicking back, simple past and past participle kicked back)

  1. (informal, intransitive, idiomatic) To relax; to laze.
    Synonyms: take it easy, lie back, kick it, kick up one's heels
    I'm going to stay at home on Saturday and just kick back.
    • 2024, Gracie Abrams, Audrey Hobert, “That's So True”, in The Secret of Us‎[1], performed by Gracie Abrams:
      Ooh, bet you're thinking, "She's so cool"
      Kicking back on your couch, making eyes from across the room
      Wait, I think I've been there too
  2. (informal, idiomatic, transitive, intransitive) To pay part of the proceeds of a transaction to a person or organization that mediated it, often in a way that is covert, improper, and illegal.
    It was the local government’s practice to kick back to the police officer a portion of the fines collected from traffic tickets.
    It was the insurer’s practice to kick back to the broker approximately 0.12% of the premium paid by the policyholder.
    It was the company’s practice to kick back to the negotiator at the client company.
  3. (informal, idiomatic) To return (something) to its original or rightful owner.
    Hyponym: retrocede
    They'll kick it back to you if it turns up.
  4. (informal, idiomatic) To drink (something).
    We'll kick back some beers.
  5. (of a weapon or tool) To move suddenly and forcefully in reaction to the main action (for example, when a firearm jerks backward when a bullet is fired, or when a table saw thrusts the workpiece in an unexpected direction).
    Synonym: (what a firearm does) recoil
    You better watch yourself around that saw. That thing kicks back real hard occasionally, with no warning.
    My revolver can handle .357 Magnum cartridges, but I use .38 Special, because I don't need it kicking back harder than a mule.

Derived terms

See also

  • (split proceeds corruptly): tollgate (verb)

Noun

kick back (countable and uncountable, plural kick backs)

  1. Nonstandard spelling of kickback.
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