as in clandestine
undertaken or done so as to escape being observed or known by others
an influential Washington lobbyist who has been involved in a number of backstairs deals to limit regulation of financial institutions
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Recent Examples of backstairs
And in North Carolina, a boyish trial lawyer with jury-pleasing charm (John Edwards) knocked off Lauch Faircloth, a GOP senator who played a backstairs role in getting Kenneth Starr appointed as independent counsel.
—
Walter Shapiro, The New Republic, 6 June 2019
Walter Shapiro, The New Republic, 6 June 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backstairs
Adjective
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The 16-month plot to bribe Maduro’s chief pilot illustrates how Washington pairs clandestine operations with military power to destabilize the regime while projecting strategic pressure in the region.—
Amir Daftari,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Oct. 2025
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In exchange, the agent told the pilot in a clandestine meeting, the aviator would be made a very rich man.—
Joshua Goodman,
Fortune,
28 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Patrons helped lure her outside so undercover officers could move in, per the outlet.—
Christina Coulter,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
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She's tasked with a dangerous mission for Denmark's Security and Intelligence Service (PET) that involves going undercover to get close to Ashley (Maria Cordsen), the glamorous gal pal of a drug lord, Miran (Afshin Firouzi).—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Get Ready: Katy Perry Has Released a Sneak Peek of Her New Song And the internet has receipts.—
Mehera Bonner,
Marie Claire,
15 Mar. 2017
Adjective
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But the secret underground cave that seems like the perfect place to be alone is already occupied by another fuzzy, lonely creature named Mi.—
Caroline Carlson,
Literary Hub,
3 Nov. 2025
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His urge to address religious subjects made his work largely unperformable, except in underground contexts such as the Riga discothèque.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
3 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said on Friday the incident and the recent air incursion linked to Moscow show Kremlin plans for covert and overt attacks against Europe to prepare for a possible NATO-Russia war.—
Brendan Cole,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
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The device is intended for intelligent underwater detection, real-time environmental monitoring, and potentially covert reconnaissance missions worldwide.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
25 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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By Fortune’s estimates, drawn from industry data, the value of all direct deals, using the broad definition of single investments in private companies, will explode to something like $200 billion this year, multiple the number several years ago.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
1 Nov. 2025
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Razer went public in 2017, listing on the Hong Kong stock exchange, before going private again in 2022.—
Lucy Handley,
CNBC,
1 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Backstairs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backstairs. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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