Definition of "backstops" [backstops]

• Plural form of backstop. (noun)
• Third-person singular simple present indicative form of backstop. (verb)

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• "Identities were what the American agency referred to as backstops, not simply the flash-identities used on one-time operations that would not stand up under close scrutiny."
• "He has hinted that a model might be found in the Advertising Standards Authority ASA, an industry-funded body that mostly uses peer pressure to police advertising, but can call on legal "backstops"-official regulators with the power to punish stubborn offenders."
• "Freddie's chairman and chief executive, said that the company doesn't expect to need those Treasury "backstops" but that they provide reassurance in case "financial and housing markets deteriorate even much more severely than we're currently expecting.""