back forty

American  

Or back 40

noun

1. remote, usually uncultivated acreage on a large piece of land, as on a farm or ranch.

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Etymology

Origin of back forty

Apparently because forty acres was a typical size for such a piece of land

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

back forty

So, you’re not saying he was a special agent going back forty years?

From The New Yorker ● Nov. 24, 2019

And, here, it’s instructive again to go back forty years.

From The New Yorker ● Apr. 11, 2019

“Main man, you’re my support,” it begins, “your two strong legs, your back forty years against a brick wall.”

From New York Times ● Mar. 31, 2012

This sign, however, once passed, it seemed to you that you were taken back forty years, and to the other end of Paris.

From Jack 1877 by Mary Neal Sherwood

“When I heard that there hymn,” she went on quaveringly, “it took me back forty year an’ more.

From In Wild Rose Time by Amanda M. Douglas