backtalking, a. Chiefly U.S.
Brit. /ˈbaktɔːkɪŋ/, U.S. /ˈbækˌtɔkɪŋ/, /ˈbækˌtɑkɪŋ/
[‹ back-talk n. + -ing suffix2. Compare later back-talk v.]
Engaging in back-talk; confrontational; argumentative.
| 1938H. Lundbergh in A. B. Benson & N. Hedim Swedes in Amer. 487 He conceived his celebrated ‘Charlie McCarthy’, the snippy, saucy, backtalking dummy. 1984 A. B. Rugh Family in Contemp. Egypt iv. 75 The brash, backtalking, swaggering, aggressive female who stands no nonsense is a valued sub-cultural personality in lower-class Bulaq. 1998 Publishers Weekly 5 Jan. 63/3 Ricker, a teacher, and Crowder, a psychologist, present a compact plan for dealing with backtalking kids. |