backscatters
|back-scat-ters|
🇺🇸
/ˈbækˌskætər/
🇬🇧
/ˈbækˌskætə/
(backscatter)
scatter backward
Etymology
'backscatter' originates in modern English as a compound of the adverb 'back' and the verb 'scatter', where 'back' originally meant 'to or toward the rear' and 'scatter' meant 'to disperse or separate widely'.
'back' comes from Old English 'bæc' meaning 'rear' or 'behind', while 'scatter' developed in Middle English from verbs meaning 'to scatter/disperse' (influenced by Germanic and Old Norse sources); the compound 'backscatter' emerged in technological and scientific contexts in the 20th century to name the phenomenon of scattering back toward the source.
Initially, the elements meant 'rear' (for 'back') and 'to disperse' (for 'scatter'); over time the compound acquired the specialized technical meaning 'to send part of a wave/particle beam back toward its source' used in physics, radar, imaging, and related fields.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
the portion of scattered particles, radiation, or signal that is sent back toward the source; an instance of such scattering (often used in physics, radar, and imaging contexts).
The instrument measured the backscatters from the surface to estimate roughness.
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Verb 1
to scatter or reflect (particles, waves, or radiation) back toward the direction they came from; to cause part of a signal or beam to return toward its source.
When sunlight hits the aerosols, the atmosphere backscatters some of the light toward space.
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Last updated: 2025/12/27 02:18