date back
idiom
: to have come into being (a number of years ago)
a custom that dates back 400 years
Examples of date back in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The origins of Short’s Black Dahlia nickname date back long before her murder.
—
Alex Gurley, PEOPLE, 15 Jan. 2026
But changing the coach was never going to immediately fix any of the obvious problems with the squad, which date back through Alonso’s short time on the bench to the miserable final stages of predecessor Carlo Ancelotti’s second reign.
—Dermot Corrigan, New York Times, 15 Jan. 2026
The oldest of the cat skeletal remains date back about 4,000 years ago.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 15 Jan. 2026
So, try the spread at Trinquet, a cozy restaurant in the Old Town, the historic center where some facades date back to the medieval period.
—Liz Provencher, Travel + Leisure, 9 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for date back
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Date back.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/date%20back. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
