as in to aid
to provide (someone) with what is useful or necessary to achieve an end
the Nobel-winning geneticist was of course backstopped in his research by a team of highly talented assistants
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of backstop
Williams was looking for feedback on the Fed’s use of a standing repo facility, a permanent lending tool that can backstop markets, per the report.
—
Alex Harring, CNBC, 17 Nov. 2025
More nuclear power could help backstop renewables and displace coal.
—Brad Plumer, New York Times, 22 Oct. 2025
In that deal, Google also agreed to backstop a decade-long Fluidstack contract to buy capacity.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 25 Sep. 2025
If finalized, procuring M109A7s would transform Taiwan’s ground firepower and backstop its rocket and missile capabilities.
—Kapil Kajal, Interesting Engineering, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for backstop
Alex Harring, CNBC, 17 Nov. 2025
More nuclear power could help backstop renewables and displace coal.
—Brad Plumer, New York Times, 22 Oct. 2025
In that deal, Google also agreed to backstop a decade-long Fluidstack contract to buy capacity.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 25 Sep. 2025
If finalized, procuring M109A7s would transform Taiwan’s ground firepower and backstop its rocket and missile capabilities.
—Kapil Kajal, Interesting Engineering, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for backstop
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backstop
Verb
-
She was also charged with concealing and aiding a fugitive, but that charge was later dropped.—
Jeramie Bizzle,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Choose Iowa gives food banks more options A state program bringing together farmers and consumers also has played a role in aiding food banks.—
F. Amanda Tugade,
Des Moines Register,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Dual citizenship Henley & Partners is one of a number of companies that assists high-net-worth individuals in attaining dual citizenship around the globe.—
Maureen O'Hare,
CNN Money,
13 Jan. 2026
-
So far, they have not been called upon to assist.—
Jennifer Mayerle,
CBS News,
13 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Conversely, collision coverage helps when your own car is damaged in a crash, whereas medical coverage helps cover treatment costs following an accident.—
Ethan M. Stone,
Miami Herald,
9 Jan. 2026
-
Additional mortgage purchases by Fannie Mae and Freddie could temporarily help lower mortgage costs, but that approach also could have unintended consequences, according to TD Securities analysts.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The platform generates full, commercially usable compositions from text prompts, with tools for editing lyrics, timing, and instrumentation, and supports multi stem downloads for traditional studio workflows.—
Charlie Fink,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
-
The diplomat also said that other major powers are unlikely to support the board in its current form.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
23 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Backstop.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backstop. Accessed 29 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
