backpack
Americannoun
-
backpacks
plural
verb (used without object)
-
backpacks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
backpacked,
past participle, past
-
backpacking
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
backpacks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
backpacked,
past participle, past
-
backpacking
present participle
noun
-
a rucksack or knapsack
-
a pack carried on the back of an astronaut, containing oxygen cylinders, essential supplies, etc
verb
-
(intr) to travel about or go hiking with a backpack
-
(tr) to transport (food or equipment) by backpack
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
backpacksimple
-
backpackssimple
-
have backpackedperfect
-
has backpackedperfect
-
am backpackingprogressive
-
are backpackingprogressive
-
is backpackingprogressive
-
have been backpackingperfect progressive
-
has been backpackingperfect progressive
Past
-
backpackedsimple
-
had backpackedperfect
-
was backpackingprogressive
-
were backpackingprogressive
-
had been backpackingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of backpack
Explanation
A backpack is a bag you wear on your back, with straps over your shoulders. Lots of kids carry their books to school in a backpack. A hiker might carry a heavy backpack for miles, with food and a folded tent inside, while a kindergartner's backpack will be much smaller, and may have a cartoon character on it. You can also call this portable kind of bag a rucksack. If you hike with a backpack, you go backpacking, and you can call yourself a backpacker. The word's been around since the earliest 20th century.
Vocabulary lists containing backpack
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 grainy footage, which has no audio, is said to show her wearing a yellow shirt, a baseball cap and a backpack while browsing items, including Molly the bird.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
"The kids will have virtually nothing on their backs, just maybe a really small backpack to get on the plane," said Tom.
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
The brief social media clip features Gizmo rustling around inside a backpack in an indiscernible location.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026
Wyatt’s younger brother, Dylan, often wears his brother’s clothes and old backpack.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
I flip onto my side and dig through my backpack for earphones.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
They departed at 7 a.m. on Aug. 17, carrying only two light backpacks with their computers, jewelry, some clothes and a little food.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026
Thus, our heroes must peel themselves off from the couch and go on the run with their resentful felines Dio and GG bouncing along in backpacks.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Some napped on a beach with their faces shielded from the sun by plastic bags or T-shirts, while others rested with backpacks tucked beneath their heads.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
Reducing the idea to the point of absurdism, Gill asked Hartig if the cartoon character on countless children’s backpacks was “racist.”
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026
It opens its mouth to reveal a spiked tongue and a few pointed fangs the size of backpacks.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
This generation, who as young adults hitchhiked across the country and backpacked through Europe, now is going on safaris and hiking in the Serengeti on guided tours that offer “easy” as well as “challenging” options.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
Adamson, according to an ABC report, is a former teacher who backpacked across the country and wrote a book about the subject.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2023
After he graduated, they transitioned from being at college together to dating long-distance while Mr. Reimers backpacked around the world.
From New York Times ● Feb. 18, 2022
Poet Allen Ginsberg backpacked around the Northwest in 1956 with Zen poet Gary Snyder.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 1, 2021
Some ding-dongs believe me, though, and when that happens, I keep the lie going, spinning it until I run out of ideas: I backpacked through France, Germany, and Spain with my rich aunt from Barcelona.
From "I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter" by Erika L. Sánchez
With bikepacking — backpacking by bike — you can cover more terrain than by foot and access scenic trails closed off to cars.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
Jones and Bowles were among six foreign tourists who died after consuming free drinks at the Nana Backpacker Hostel in the popular backpacking town of Vang Vieng.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
In a season when rock climbing, backpacking and shooting the rapids are popular, maybe our reading would benefit from going big.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
I saw these and many other otherworldly species while on a life-changing backpacking trip to the island five years ago, which I chronicled for this newspaper.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026
No one would suspect the pair with long hair and scruffy beards who blended in with all of the other college students backpacking through Europe.
From "City Spies" by James Ponti
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