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
The nightclub, located along the Arpora River backwaters, had a narrow entry and exit that forced the firefighters to park their tankers about 1,300 feet away, delaying the efforts, the news agency said.
—
CBS News, 7 Dec. 2025
It’s described as a love letter to the beaches, backwaters and basements of a misunderstood yet magical state.
—Denise Petski, Deadline, 12 Nov. 2025
The life of an unattractive and unintelligent young woman living in a dreary backwater in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
—New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
Unlike Bacalar, which is relatively new to tourism, Tulum has been transformed from a sleepy backwater into a pumping party town.
—Simon Willis, Travel + Leisure, 5 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for backwater
CBS News, 7 Dec. 2025
It’s described as a love letter to the beaches, backwaters and basements of a misunderstood yet magical state.
—Denise Petski, Deadline, 12 Nov. 2025
The life of an unattractive and unintelligent young woman living in a dreary backwater in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
—New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
Unlike Bacalar, which is relatively new to tourism, Tulum has been transformed from a sleepy backwater into a pumping party town.
—Simon Willis, Travel + Leisure, 5 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for backwater
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backwater
Noun
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There’s a car chase through the countryside that’s all straining steel and revving engines and a sequence in a London nightclub — every action movie apparently needs one — that shows off close-quarter murder beautifully choreographed as clueless dancers sway.—
Mark Kennedy,
Boston Herald,
29 Jan. 2026
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The greenery, towering 20 feet above the congregation, brought scents of the forest into the Abbey, and it was said at the time to reflect the couple’s love of the countryside.—
Simon Perry,
PEOPLE,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Speciesism is simply the next frontier of compassion, and many of us are already working to dismantle it.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
2 Feb. 2026
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Advocates like Aiello are now racing to secure measures to avoid catastrophe before the frontier is closed.—
Lila Seidman,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Feb. 2026
Noun
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There, detectives observed the men walking into an open space, crouching in nearby bushes and then fleeing the area at a high rate of speed in a vehicle, police said.—
Sydney Barragan,
Oc Register,
29 Jan. 2026
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Divided into five ‘rooms,’ the walled garden features over 1,000 rose bushes, an herb garden, a fruit and flower garden, an organic vegetable garden, and a white garden with a water feature.—
Bailey Bujnosek,
InStyle,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The military leader of the West African country has accused the presidents of France, Benin and Ivory Coast of supporting the armed group behind the attack, without providing any evidence to support the claim.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
31 Jan. 2026
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China for decades has cultivated an extensive network of ties across Latin America and the Caribbean, a region that encompasses more than 30 countries and 670 million people.—
Simone McCarthy,
CNN Money,
31 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Topics ranged from the connection between housing and economic development to the presence of NIMBYism in America’s hinterland.—
Jeffrey Steele,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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Quick, frequent rail connections between a large city and its hinterland are a fundamental of modern economic geography.—
F.K. Plous,
Chicago Tribune,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Users were able to comment on posts about the Australian outback incident by local news outlets.—
Alexis Simmerman,
Austin American Statesman,
29 Jan. 2026
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The musical comedy, chronicling the lives of outback Aussie teens attending a debutante ball, was due to release today, January 15, in Australia.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
15 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Backwater.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backwater. Accessed 5 Feb. 2026.
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