backdrop
Americannoun
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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:
Love has always been central to FLO's music, but on this album they explore its messier realities, with nights out providing the backdrop for stories of heartbreak, healing and friendship.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
The supplier to major automakers, including BMW, Volkswagen and Ford slashed its medium-term sales expectations against a darkening backdrop for the industry.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
The 26th International Aids Conference opened this week in Rio de Janeiro against the backdrop of deep US cuts to foreign aid introduced after President Donald Trump's return to the White House last year.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
Companies once viewed as abundant free-cash-flow generators are now being valued against a backdrop of much heavier investment spending, and in some cases their stock prices have already begun to reflect that change.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
This was the backdrop to the night on which the city council was to vote on forming a Human Relations Commission.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
He designed sets for plays and backdrops for operas and—using an iPad—created a hawthorn-blossom pattern for a stained-glass window in Westminster Abbey to honor the reign of Queen Elizabeth II.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
That’s because 1982 and 2026 have very different macroeconomic backdrops, Emanuel warns.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 27, 2026
"One year we had a mentor who was on placement in Paris so she would join from wherever she was in Paris, so would come with all these Parisian backdrops, which was quite lovely."
From BBC ● Apr. 18, 2026
Fuelled by social media, some of the city's most famous landmarks are being used as backdrops for the lavish "American-style" proposals.
From Barron's ● Feb. 12, 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
By the time about 20 minutes later when the sound managed to grow a notch more, it backdropped the clinching of Morocco’s cherished 2-0 win over favored Belgium, FIFA’s second-ranked team.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 27, 2022
Phil Manzanera, the 71-year-old guitarist for art-rock pioneers Roxy Music, is leaning into a computer camera backdropped by a nondescript hotel room.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2022
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
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.
