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

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 backwater Previously, wild rice was most commonly found in the still, shallow backwater areas of the river. Madeline Heim, Journal Sentinel, 4 Dec. 2024 Set in the future with humanity colonizing the Solar System, the resources across the various planets and asteroids render the Earth a financial backwater. Ollie Barder, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024 The 20-year road Army traveled from football backwater to College Football Playoff contender was hardly a straight line. Pete Sampson, The Athletic, 22 Nov. 2024 Brad Raffensperger, Georgia Secretary of State Schmidt’s counterpart in Georgia similarly would prefer the job as elections chief had remained a bureaucratic backwater. Philip Elliott, TIME, 4 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for backwater 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backwater
Noun
  • When small family dairy farms were numerous and dotted the countryside, and kids would play summer baseball without adults coaching.
    Tom Redman, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2025
  • The Hudson Valley, located along the Hudson River north of New York City, offers bucolic countryside living just outside the Big Apple.
    Emma Reynolds, Robb Report, 6 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • All these factors will influence how the commercial frontier will play into what might be the next big conflict: Taiwan.
    Matt Kaplan, Foreign Affairs, 31 Jan. 2025
  • Hezbollah must pull its forces north of Lebanon’s Litani River – a frontier beyond which the militant group was not supposed to have advanced under a 2006 United Nations Security Council resolution.
    Mick Krever, CNN, 24 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • Authorities say one issue is smoldering hot spots that can burn into the root systems of trees and bushes causing fires to linger.
    Anissa Reyes, Baltimore Sun, 16 Jan. 2025
  • The flames spread to a tractor-trailer and some surrounding bushes, according to authorities.
    Michael Ruiz, Fox News, 15 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • Comments The Voice has proved to be a massively successful format worldwide, allowing eager singers from dozens of countries to show off their vocal abilities.
    Alamin Yohannes, EW.com, 4 Feb. 2025
  • Reports from Canadian news outlets warn of a potential recession in the northern country if Trump’s 25% tariff on Canadian exports sustains, along with the retaliatory tariffs Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced would go into effect on Feb 4.
    Kate Linderman, Miami Herald, 3 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • The Premier League will always be the priority, yet Emery views this competition as his managerial hinterland.
    Jacob Tanswell, The Athletic, 20 Jan. 2025
  • As Russia launches its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, primary schools across Russia’s hinterlands are transformed into recruitment stages for the war.
    Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 22 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • True to its name, this extraordinary conflict saw armed soldiers pitted against emus (Dromaius novaehollandiae), large flightless birds native to the Australian outback.
    Scott Travers, Forbes, 26 Dec. 2024
  • Watch on Hulu The Royal Hotel Ozark star Julia Garner reunites with director Kitty Green (The Assistant) for this taut psychological thriller in which BFFs Hanna (Garner) and Liv (Jessica Henwick) decide to backpack their way through the Australian outback.
    Jennifer M. Wood, WIRED, 7 Nov. 2024

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Cite this Entry

“Backwater.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backwater. Accessed 10 Feb. 2025.

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