Meaning & use
rollbacks
Last updated
“rollbacks” is a form of “rollback”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounplural
Reductions or reversals of something, such as prices, taxes, or rules, often returning them to an earlier level.
Grammar: Plural of 'rollback'; use it with a plural verb: 'The rollbacks are unpopular.'
Patterns
- rollbacks of something
- rollbacks in something
- price rollbacks
- tax rollbacks
The company announced rollbacks of its prices after customer complaints.
Voters worried about rollbacks in environmental protections.
The government's tax rollbacks will take effect next year.
nounplural
Instances of returning to a previous, often less strict, state or policy.
Grammar: Often used in political contexts: 'rollbacks of regulations' means removing rules.
Patterns
- rollbacks of regulations
- rollbacks of rights
- policy rollbacks
The new administration promised rollbacks of many old regulations.
There have been rollbacks of workers' rights in some industries.
The rollbacks were criticized by labor unions.
Word forms
| singular | rollback |
|---|
Common combinations
- price rollbacks
- The supermarket advertised price rollbacks on hundreds of items.
- tax rollbacks
- Tax rollbacks are popular with voters but can reduce public services.
- rollbacks of regulations
- Environmental groups opposed the rollbacks of regulations.
- wage rollbacks
- The union rejected wage rollbacks proposed by management.
Synonyms and how they differ
- reductions
- A general word for making something smaller; 'rollbacks' often suggests a return to a previous lower level or a reversal of a policy.
- cuts
- Often used for spending or jobs; 'rollbacks' is more common for prices, taxes, or rules.
- reversals
- Emphasizes changing a decision back; 'rollbacks' can also mean simply lowering something.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: rollbacks or roll call?
rollbacks vs roll call
A roll call is when names are read aloud to check who is present; 'rollbacks' are reductions or reversals.
Practice
Choose the sentence that uses 'rollbacks' correctly.
Choose one answer.
'Rollbacks' means reductions, so it fits a store announcement about prices. Option 0 confuses it with 'roll call', option 2 is a gymnastics move called a 'rollback' (singular) but the plural is not used that way here, and option 3 has wrong verb agreement.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “rollbacks”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.