different between snapshot vs backup

English

Etymology

snap +? shot

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /snæp.??t/

Noun

snapshot (plural snapshots)

1. A photograph, especially one taken quickly or in a moment of opportunity.

   He carried a snapshot of his daughter.

2. A glimpse of something; a portrayal of something at a moment in time.
3. (computing) A file or set of files captured at a particular time, often capable of being reloaded to restore the earlier state.

   This game is so hard that I find myself taking a snapshot every few seconds in case I get killed.

4. (soccer) A quick, unplanned or unexpected shot.
5. (firearms) A quick offhand shot, made without deliberately taking aim over the sights.
   • 1892, Stanley Waterloo, A Man and a Woman

     How quick the eye and hand to catch him [the ruffed grouse] when he rises from the underbrush and is out of sight in the wood before the untrained sportsman stops him with what is little more than a snapshot, so instantaneously must all be done!

Derived terms

• Snapchat

Translations

Verb

snapshot (third-person singular simple present snapshots, present participle snapshotting, simple past and past participle snapshotted)

1. (transitive) To take a photograph of.
2. (transitive, computing) To capture the state of, in a snapshot.
   • 2007, David E. Irwin, An Operating System Architecture for Networked Server Infrastructure (page 30)

     Filer appliances also offer programmatic snapshotting and cloning at the block-level or file system-level.

Translations

References

• “snapshot”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–present.

English

Alternative forms

• back-up

Etymology

back +? up

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?bæk??p/

Noun

backup (plural backups)

1. A reserve or substitute.

   If the goalkeeper is injured, we have a backup.

2. (computing) A copy of a file or record, stored separately from the original, that can be used to recover the original if it is destroyed or damaged.

   After the power failure, we had to restore the database from backup.

3. An accumulation of material caused by a (partial) obstruction or (complete) blockage of the flow or movement of the material, or an accumulation of material that causes an overflow due to the flow being greater than the maximum possible flow.

   The accident caused a mile-long backup on the highway.

   The blockage caused a backup in the plumbing.

4. (law enforcement) reinforcements

   He's got a gun! You'd better send for backup.

Synonyms

• (reserve): reserve, stand-in, spare, substitute
• (computing: copy of a file or record):
• (accumulation of material caused by an obstruction of flow): tailback, line (of cars)

Descendants

Translations

Adjective

backup (not comparable)

1. Standby, reserve or extra.

   I am only a backup player.

2. (computing) That is intended as a backup.

   Make a backup copy of that file.

3. Supporting, reinforcing; (music) of or related to accompaniment

Usage notes

Back-up is an alternative spelling of backup. Both spellings are used as either a noun or an adjective. The verb back up is always spelled as two words and never with a hyphen.

Synonyms

• (reserve): extra, reserve, spare, standby
• (supporting): backing

Translations

Verb

backup (third-person singular simple present backups, present participle backupping, simple past and past participle backupped)

1. Misspelling of back up.

Anagrams

• upback

Italian

Etymology

Borrowed from English backup.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /be?kap/, /?b?.kap/

Noun

backup m (invariable)

1. (computing) backup

Portuguese

Alternative forms

• becape

Etymology

Borrowed from English backup.

Noun

backup m (plural backups)

1. (computing) backup (copy of file or record)