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
In 2002 Bisignano took charge at a Citi backwater called Global Transactions Services that was then losing $3 billion a year.
—
Shawn Tully, Fortune, 31 Jan. 2026
The film takes place in a dreary town in Victoria, Australia, a drab industrial backwater whose people — or, at least some of whom — flock to religion to give their lives the brightness of hope and higher purpose.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 24 Jan. 2026
The Arctic is no longer a frozen backwater.
—Paul McCarthy, Boston Herald, 23 Jan. 2026
But in reality, playing in that kind of backwater only exposes gamblers to more risk.
—David K. Li, NBC news, 17 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for backwater
Shawn Tully, Fortune, 31 Jan. 2026
The film takes place in a dreary town in Victoria, Australia, a drab industrial backwater whose people — or, at least some of whom — flock to religion to give their lives the brightness of hope and higher purpose.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 24 Jan. 2026
The Arctic is no longer a frozen backwater.
—Paul McCarthy, Boston Herald, 23 Jan. 2026
But in reality, playing in that kind of backwater only exposes gamblers to more risk.
—David K. Li, NBC news, 17 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for backwater
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backwater
Noun
-
They were traced to the purchase of 11 real estate properties, 14 plots of land cultivated as vineyards and olive groves, along with artworks and financial assets in Florence and the neighboring Tuscan countryside.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
26 Mar. 2026
-
The terrace opens onto uninterrupted countryside vistas, ideal for admiring over a sunset apéritif.—
Madeline Weinfield,
Architectural Digest,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Internet trailblazer Yahoo is exploring technology’s next frontier with Scout, an answer engine powered by artificial intelligence.—
Michael Liedtke,
Fortune,
29 Mar. 2026
-
The United States will be in a far stronger position to win the artificial intelligence race if government works with, rather than against, the companies pioneering frontier technology.—
Editorial Board,
Washington Post,
29 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Longtime fans may recall that on Thanksgiving Night 2009, Woods’ Cadillac Escalade collided with a fire hydrant, tree and several bushes near his Central Florida home, and he was ticketed with careless driving.—
Devoun Cetoute,
Miami Herald,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Calling a tall bush a tree does not make it so.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Wadephul told reporters on Thusday at a meeting of democratic countries with the largest economies in France that Russia’s President Vladimir Putin was hoping to use the Iran war as a distraction from his attack on Ukraine.—
Bart Jansen,
USA Today,
28 Mar. 2026
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Visitors from more than 100 countries are expected to attend the three-day festival.—
Abby Dodge,
CBS News,
28 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Moreover, as soon as Christianity began to spread outside his native land, Christian converts faced new situations in unexpected contexts, completely different from those of their founder, an itinerant Jewish preacher in the sparsely populated hinterlands of rural Galilee.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
26 Mar. 2026
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Scattered across the continent were hundreds of towns populated by a few hundred people, and each of these towns had an economic hinterland of perhaps 50 to 100 square miles, with the bulk of all agricultural and household production produced and remaining in that area.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Both Benna and Einhorn were used to André pitching outrageous concepts in conversation over the years, whether in regard to a new client or a road trip involving some remote outback and hallucinogens.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
7 Mar. 2026
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Black lives don’t matter in Warwick Thornton’s fiercely original outback Western Wolfram, a surprisingly emotional genre piece that simmers with menace and doesn’t let up until the bloody finale.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
17 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Backwater.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backwater. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
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