backdrop
Americannoun
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backdrops
plural
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especially British, back-cloth. Theater. the rear curtain of a stage setting.
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the background of an event; setting.
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Gymnastics. a maneuver in which a trampolinist jumps in the air, lands on the back with the arms and legs pointed upward, and then springs up to a standing position.
verb (used with object)
noun
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another name for backcloth
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the background to any scene or situation
Usage
What does backdrop mean? Backdrop refers to the background or setting of a situation or event. It can refer to something physically located in the background of something else, such as a backdrop used for a photo shoot. It can also be used figuratively to refer to circumstances that surround an event, as in a backdrop of scandal and accusations of fraud. More specifically, a backdrop is the curtain that hangs at the back of the stage in a theater, as in We have to fix the rips in the backdrop before the big show. Less commonly, backdrop can also be used as a verb to mean providing a background for something, as in The towering trees backdropped the outdoor photo shoot. Example: The film took place against the backdrop of World War II and featured major events from the war.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of backdrop
Explanation
A backdrop is the scenery that hangs behind the actors in a play. You might help to paint the backdrop for your school's production of "The Sound of Music." The backdrop is an important part of a theater production, since it provides a setting for a play or sets a mood for a musical performance. If you're watching a local version of "Oliver!" the backdrop might be designed to look like a London street scene, for example. The noun backdrop comes from US theater slang, from a combination of back and drop around 1913.
Vocabulary lists containing backdrop
Drama
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Awkward
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Theater - Introductory
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The towering Berchtesgaden Alps provide the backdrop as Rohl details his eventful 12 months, in which he went from crisis at Sheffield Wednesday to the relative calm of Salzburg via Glasgow.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
Ishbia delivers the news against the backdrop of the basketball court at UWM’s corporate campus.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
Club environments provide the perfect backdrop for all of it, then and now.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
“Investors viewed the weaker payrolls backdrop as reducing the likelihood of near-term Fed tightening, thereby easing a key valuation headwind for risk assets,” said Chew.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026
He’d taken a picture of an ancient redwood tree standing solemnly against the backdrop of the Pacific Ocean.
From "Shooting Kabul" by N. H. Senzai
The ground is situated in the city's downtown and once you are inside it, it has one of the best backdrops I've experienced in football.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026
That difference shows up clearly when comparing the pre-inflation backdrops.
From Barron's ● May 27, 2026
The nonprofit has considered soliciting sponsorships that would allow car companies to showcase vehicles with backdrops and raised platforms, though Barnes said the group may not pursue the event.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
That’s because 1982 and 2026 have very different macroeconomic backdrops, Emanuel warns.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 27, 2026
Not only her eyes and all her senses but also inanimate things seemed to exist because of him, backdrops to his presence.
From "Sula" by Toni Morrison
“It’s the corner of the business with momentum tailwinds, backdropped by AI’s insatiable appetite for energy.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2025
He usually retained the sinister qualities from Yang’s images — sometimes backdropped by a nuclear explosion or a horde of zombies.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 26, 2023
In Early August, my partner and I were awakened by a loud alarm on his phone: “Earthquake alert, earthquake alert,” the phone warned with escalating intensity, backdropped by a soundtrack of fake sirens.
From Slate ● Sep. 3, 2022
A royal hockey tour nonetheless backdropped by the solemnity of Seattle, the Canadiens, and an unforgiving pandemic of a century past.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 25, 2021
Jam looked at her reflection, backdropped by the creature, then wiped her hands over her face.
From "Pet" by Akwaeke Emezi
Frank tapped L.A. painter Jessalyn Brooks to paint a colorful mural on the cinderblock wall backdropping the pool.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2024
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
