back-street

[ bak-street ]
/ ˈbækˌstrit /

adjective

taking place in secrecy and often illegally: back-street political maneuvering; back-street drug dealing.

QUIZZES

TAKE THIS QUIZ TO SEE WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT 2ND-3RD GRADE VOCAB FROM BOOKS!

Are you learning new vocabulary? Or do you just have an interest in words? Either way, this quiz is for you.
Question 1 of 10
orchard
body of land completely surrounded by water
group of cultivated fruit trees
long mournful cry
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of back-street

First recorded in 1895–1900

Words nearby back-street

back-patting, back-pedal, back-seat driver, back-slapping, back-stabbing, back-street, back-talk, back-to-back, back-to-basics, back-trail, back-up light

Definition for back-street (2 of 2)

back street

noun

a street apart from the main or business area of a town.
Compare side street.

Origin of back street

First recorded in 1630–40
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for back-street

Idioms and Phrases with back-street

back street

Also, back alley. A less prominent or inferior location; also, a scene of clandestine or illegal dealings. For example, The highway department is very slow to clear snow from the back streets, or Before they were made legal, abortions were often performed in back alleys. Although back street literally means “one away from the main or business area of a town or city,” this term, from the early 1600s, became associated with underhanded dealings, and back alley, from the mid-1800s, is always used in this sense.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.