as in countryside
a rural region that forms the edge of the settled or developed part of a country
a distant backwater that didn't even have electricity at that time
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of backwater
Having set up this backwater office where nothing ever happens and then bring death to the door was a brilliant stroke.
—
Patrick Hipes, Deadline, 17 June 2025
In 2001, Michael Dorrell volunteered to move from the Sydney headquarters of Australian investment bank Macquarie to a backwater in its infrastructure investing specialty: the United States of America.
—Hank Tucker, Forbes.com, 8 Apr. 2025
Yet a constant among the nations relying on UEFA for a big chunk of club incomes is one few would consider a footballing backwater.
—Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 31 May 2025
One day, while fishing a swampy Texas backwater in his kayak, Lin had a close encounter with an alligator that sparked some hard-bait creativity.
—Alice Jones Webb, Outdoor Life, 15 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for backwater
Patrick Hipes, Deadline, 17 June 2025
In 2001, Michael Dorrell volunteered to move from the Sydney headquarters of Australian investment bank Macquarie to a backwater in its infrastructure investing specialty: the United States of America.
—Hank Tucker, Forbes.com, 8 Apr. 2025
Yet a constant among the nations relying on UEFA for a big chunk of club incomes is one few would consider a footballing backwater.
—Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 31 May 2025
One day, while fishing a swampy Texas backwater in his kayak, Lin had a close encounter with an alligator that sparked some hard-bait creativity.
—Alice Jones Webb, Outdoor Life, 15 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for backwater
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backwater
Noun
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My earliest memories are of a huge accordion in front of me while the musicians, who passed through my house – my father, who was a manager of musicians coming from the countryside of Argentina to Buenos Aires, always hosted them – played and rehearsed nearby.—
DAVID BURKE,
Miami Herald,
9 July 2025
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On paper, it could be pitched as a Hungarian Blair Witch Project meets Insidious, using a faux-documentary device to explore a case of demonic possession among a group of outsiders living in the countryside.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
8 July 2025
Noun
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As the sport heads into a new frontier with revenue sharing, TCU head coach Sonny Dykes wants to clean up college football.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
11 July 2025
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And that, for every forward-thinking business leader, opens an entirely new frontier.—
Ashar Samdani,
Forbes.com,
10 July 2025
Noun
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In 2018, the country industry's Woodlawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Nashville — the final resting place of George Jones, Tammy Wynette, and Porter Wagoner among many others — created the Lynn Anderson Rose Garden, consisting of over 100 hybrid tea rose bushes.—
Marcus K. Dowling,
The Tennessean,
2 July 2025
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For example, animals learn that a photo of hands (A) is correct when paired with a classroom (B), a classroom (B) is correct when paired with bushes (C), bushes (C) are correct when paired with a highway (D), and a highway (D) is correct when paired with a sunset (E).—
Olga Lazareva,
The Conversation,
1 July 2025
Noun
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And in some countries, gratuities aren't usually included with credit card charges.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
9 July 2025
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All of the other letters were similar, telling countries that the new tariffs were intended to rectify trade imbalances with the U.S. The letter to Brazil, however, was about Brazilian politics.—
Danielle Kurtzleben,
NPR,
9 July 2025
Noun
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On the opposite shore of the lake, the Venetian denomination Bardolino DOC extends on the morainic hills of the hinterland.—
Elisabetta Tosi,
Forbes.com,
23 June 2025
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The film gathers immoral cops, ruthless women and corrupt politicians to complete the world of populist cinema based in hinterlands of India.—
Sweta Kaushal,
Forbes.com,
14 June 2025
Noun
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Carolina Wilga, a German backpacker, was found alive after spending 12 days missing in the remote outback of Western Australia, according to local authorities.—
Hollie Silverman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 July 2025
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This mismatch in the data between the different antennas caused the blur, so to remove it, the researchers eliminated the signal coming from the outer antennas to favor only the inner part of the telescope, which is spread out over about 2.3 square miles in the Australian outback.—
Jacopo Prisco,
CNN Money,
30 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Backwater.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backwater. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
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