To cause or set off a backlash.
A sudden backward motion.
A negative reaction, objection or outcry, especially of a violent or abrupt nature.
The jarring or reflex motion caused in badly fitting machinery by irregularities in velocity or a reverse of motion.
The looseness through which one part of connected machinery, as a wheel, gear, piston, or screw, can be moved without moving the connected parts, or a measurement of the distance moved thereby; either intentional (as allowance) or unintentional (from error or wear).
The state of things; the way things are, as opposed to the way they could be; the existing state of affairs.