backwater: Meaning and Definition of

back•wa•ter

Pronunciation: (bak'wô"tur, -wot"ur), [key]
— n.
  1. water held or forced back, as by a dam, flood, or tide.
  2. a place or state of stagnant backwardness: This area of the country is a backwater that continues to resist progress.
  3. an isolated, peaceful place.
  4. a stroke executed by pushing a paddle forward, causing a canoe to move backward.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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