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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Manned semisubmersibles built in clandestine jungle shipyards have been used for decades to ferry cocaine north from Colombia, the world's biggest cocaine producer, to Central America or Mexico.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
26 Jan. 2026
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Written and directed by Jafar Panahi (known for his clandestine 2011 documentary This Is Not a Film), the story follows released political prisoners seeking revenge after a chance roadside meeting.—
Savannah Walsh,
Vanity Fair,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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According to the District Attorney’s Office, Akers was working undercover as part of a task force when Stewart, 46, ran from uniformed law enforcement officers and then hid inside an unlocked tow truck.—
Alex Riggins,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Jan. 2026
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The undercover investigators later spoke with Lorenz by phone.—
Rosalio Ahumada,
Sacbee.com,
24 Jan. 2026
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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For the next two years, David spent most of his time held captive in underground tunnels built beneath the Gaza Strip.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
23 Jan. 2026
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The casino also will have a players lounge; 11 bars, including a center bar and a sports bar; and 3,500 parking spaces, consisting of a 2,700-space underground parking garage and 800 surface parking spaces.—
Joe Marusak,
Charlotte Observer,
23 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Over the course of the novel, each Flynn girl is suspended from school at least once for some screwball infraction, including spreading conspiratorial theories about covert surveillance operations in town, punching another kid in the face, and preparing to commit an act of domestic terrorism.—
Hannah Gold,
New Yorker,
21 Jan. 2026
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After Cruise's Ethan Hunt is falsely accused of planting a bomb that nearly obliterates the Kremlin, he is secretly tasked with exposing the real culprit, teaming with fellow agents Jane (Paula Patton) and Benji (Simon Pegg) and an intelligence analyst (Jeremy Renner) on a covert mission.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Another lawsuit brought by detainees in federal court in Fort Myers argued that immigration was a federal issue, and Florida agencies and private contractors hired by the state had no authority to operate the facility under federal law.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
29 Jan. 2026
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Indiana is preparing to work with private industry to determine the feasibility of retrieving rare earth elements from its legacy coal byproducts.—
Noël Fletcher,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Backstairs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backstairs. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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