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
Chaotic warrens in rundown backwaters, such as the desolate apartment complex where Beibei’s grandmother used to live, suggest neglect that’s far from benign.
—
Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 29 Jan. 2025
Why are the Ukrainians risking lives and resources on a comparatively meaningless action in a sector that’s a relative backwater, when critical Ukrainian strongpoints in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast are under relentless Russian assault?
—David Axe, Forbes, 22 Dec. 2024
But even as ties have grown in recent years, Washington’s foreign policy establishment still considers Africa to be a strategic backwater.
—Ken Opalo, Foreign Affairs, 4 Dec. 2024
Several companies have tested their autonomous vehicles in Japan, but the country is a bit of a backwater compared to China and the US.
—Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 17 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for backwater
Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 29 Jan. 2025
Why are the Ukrainians risking lives and resources on a comparatively meaningless action in a sector that’s a relative backwater, when critical Ukrainian strongpoints in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast are under relentless Russian assault?
—David Axe, Forbes, 22 Dec. 2024
But even as ties have grown in recent years, Washington’s foreign policy establishment still considers Africa to be a strategic backwater.
—Ken Opalo, Foreign Affairs, 4 Dec. 2024
Several companies have tested their autonomous vehicles in Japan, but the country is a bit of a backwater compared to China and the US.
—Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 17 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for backwater
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backwater
Noun
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The Texas Department of Transportation is spending $540 million to widen and revamp stretches of I-20 and I-30 linking Fort Worth and Weatherford — a yearslong project that promises eased traffic, if not the preservation of remaining countryside.—
Jaime Moore-Carrillo,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 Apr. 2025
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The surrounding area is great for biking, hiking, and anyone else who needs a dose of medicine in the form of expansive countryside.—
Tim Nelson,
Architectural Digest,
31 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The push for menstrual leave may represent the next frontier in recognizing the full spectrum of women's health needs in the workplace.—
Newsweek Staff,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Apr. 2025
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Artificial Integrity is the new frontier to make AI agents integrity-led with regard to context-aware decision-making, including social, ethical, and moral reasoning, and therefore, the ability to adapt dynamically across diverse decision-making frameworks.—
Hamilton Mann,
Forbes.com,
3 Apr. 2025
Noun
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By Lila Seidman Staff Writer Follow April 5, 2025 3 AM PT Poodle-dog bush, a pretty but dangerous plant, is growing in parts of the Angeles National Forest hit by recent wildfires.—
Lila Seidman,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Apr. 2025
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The geckos come out at night – so the team also goes trekking in the dark with flashlights to look for geckos perched on leaves and bushes.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
28 Mar. 2025
Noun
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After winning a 2023 high school cross country state championship as a 13-year-old, Annabella Tomasic had a less dominant season in ’24.—
Buddy Collings,
The Orlando Sentinel,
4 Apr. 2025
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More recent polling from Pew shows a country with negative but not-very-strong feelings about the ban.—
Kaitlyn Tiffany,
The Atlantic,
4 Apr. 2025
Noun
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To anyone who has toured wineries in Tuscany, the setting rings of the Italian hinterland.—
Lauren Mowery,
Forbes.com,
31 Mar. 2025
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Vance and his wife Usha visited an American military base in Greenland’s remote icy hinterland after the Second Lady scaled back plans for a more public-facing trip that sparked outrage among local officials and ordinary people.—
Dave Goldiner,
New York Daily News,
28 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Finding escaped marsupials in the vast Australian outback may sound much harder than finding a needle in a haystack.—
Aspen Pflughoeft,
Miami Herald,
13 Mar. 2025
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Take the story of the longest living trapdoor spider, who survived in the Australian outback to the ripe age of 43.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes,
21 Dec. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Backwater.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backwater. Accessed 15 Apr. 2025.
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