backscratching

1. gerundparticiplepresentpresent participle and gerund of backscratch

plural backscratchings

1. countableuncountableThe act or habit of engaging in a reciprocal beneficial action.

   Near-synonym: logrolling

   1 more example

   She babysits the kids, and we mow her lawn. A little backscratching never hurt anybody!

   Synonyms: logrolling

   1. countableoftenuncountableSuch behavior that is corrupt.

      You have to "tip" the inspector if you want a license in this town. Too much backscratching around here!

      1 more example

      They discovered a citation ring: a group of researchers citing one another inordinately. This backscratching aimed to inflate their article-level metrics and author-level metrics.

      Synonyms: logrolling