a central cohesive source of support and stability; "faith is his anchor"; "the keystone of campaign reform was the ban on soft money"; "he is the linchpin of this firm"
Used in a Sentence
backbone
How to use backbone in a sentence. Example sentences and definitions for backbone.
Editorial note
These days, the internet is the backbone of our world.
Examples6
Definitions5
Parts of speech1
Quick take
a central cohesive source of support and stability; "faith is his anchor"; "the keystone of campaign reform was the ban on soft money"; "he is the linchpin of this firm"
Meaning at a glance
The clearest senses and uses of backbone gathered in one view.
fortitude and determination; "he didn't have the guts to try it"
the series of vertebrae forming the axis of the skeleton and protecting the spinal cord; "the fall broke his back"
Definitions
Core meanings and parts of speech for backbone.
noun
a central cohesive source of support and stability; "faith is his anchor"; "the keystone of campaign reform was the ban on soft money"; "he is the linchpin of this firm"
noun
fortitude and determination; "he didn't have the guts to try it"
noun
the series of vertebrae forming the axis of the skeleton and protecting the spinal cord; "the fall broke his back"
noun
the part of a book's cover that encloses the inner side of the book's pages and that faces outward when the book is shelved; "the title and author were printed on the spine of the book"
See also: spine
noun
the part of a network that connects other networks together; "the backbone is the part of a communication network that carries the heaviest traffic"
Example sentences
These days, the internet is the backbone of our world.
A whole swarm of them grinding through a work queue in random order is great; using them as the backbone of your web presence will have pain points.
The backbone of the modern nuclear arsenal is the ballistic missile submarine.
It also means that the NSA can get Yahoo users' communications without even having to bother Yahoo, as they can get it with the assistance of backbone networks.
Well, probably not: unless industry practices have changed drastically, even those backbone trunks are actually oversubscribed.
Additional regulation of internet backbone providers to perform deep packet inspection for government investigation of copyright infringement.
Frequently asked questions
Short answers drawn from the clearest meanings and examples for this word.
How do you use backbone in a sentence?
These days, the internet is the backbone of our world.
What does backbone mean?
a central cohesive source of support and stability; "faith is his anchor"; "the keystone of campaign reform was the ban on soft money"; "he is the linchpin of this firm"
What part of speech is backbone?
backbone is commonly used as noun.