backoff

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See also: back off

English

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Etymology

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Deverbal from back off.

Noun

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backoff (countable and uncountable, plural backoffs)

  1. (computing) The situation where an algorithm or process refrains from taking an action it would otherwise have taken.
    a backoff strategy to avoid collisions
  2. (surfing) The situation where an incoming wave passes from shallower water to a deeper area, making the wave less steep and potentially unsurfable.
    • 1997, James MacLaren, Learn to Surf, page 82:
      The surfer is in the middle of a backoff. Paddle for unbroken waves butterfly-style, with both arms at the same time, instead of using the crawl stroke that got you out to where the waves are breaking.
    • 2012, Kimberly Young Chopin, Metamorphosis: A Love Story, page 22:
      I fastened the board's leash to my ankle, jumped on and paddled past the backoff.