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 set design was highly cinematic, with a monumental staircase sweeping up one side and a moon dominating the stage, while the backdrop appeared to have a stark, almost brutalist gray texture."
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
As the team works within it and the clothes move through the space, the store becomes a backdrop that is never quite fixed, but continually responding to the world being built around it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
But that backdrop will be forgotten when it comes to head-to-head matchplay.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
Seaport held a call with institutional investors this week, and the issue that kept coming up was the interest-rate backdrop.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026
The landing capsule was still in the planning stages, but there was a lot of backdrop to be painted: midnight blue with silver stars and Earth glowing in the distance.
From "Goodbye Stranger" by Rebecca Stead
She’s a big fan of EcoSet, a Glassell Park “green resource for people in the film industry to grab what they need from a selection of paint, props, backdrops and more.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
The artificiality isn’t just about painted backdrops and CGI mobs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
Hilton said he did a lot of his production work outside, as there are a variety of luxurious backdrops ideal for his commentary.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
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
Clara found a ball of thick twine, the same that had been used to bind the rolled-up backdrops and sections of carpet that had been propped against one wall.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
“It’s the corner of the business with momentum tailwinds, backdropped by AI’s insatiable appetite for energy.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2025
Under a blanket of low-lying clouds, backdropped by the imposing pinnacle of Mount Verstovia, the concept for Windward hit her: A perfectly cooked meal in a pristine natural setting is restorative, even transformative.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 4, 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
“Maybe they’re taking biometrics, but you need biometrics taken beforehand that you can compare them to,” Johnson said at a news conference backdropped by the gates of the fort.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 28, 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.
