Backflowed

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To flow back or return in the opposite direction; to reverse the usual direction of a fluid; occurring when a substance that has moved away now comes back to its source
2. To move backward in flow after being expelled; to cause a liquid or gas to flow in reverse; happening when something previously displaced returns
3. A reversion of flow direction after initial movement; the backward movement of liquid from an outlet; a situation where an outflow becomes an inflow again

Etymology: "Backflowed" is simply the past tense and past participle of "backflow," a verb formed from "back" and "flow." Both parts are plain English words with long histories of their own: "back" descends from Old English "bæc," and "flow" from Old English "flōwan." Put together, "backflow" describes liquid or other matter running in the reverse of its normal direction, and "backflowed" is the form that reports such a movement in the past.