backwoods

American

[bak-woodz] / ˈbækˈwʊdz /

noun

(often used with a singular verb) wooded or partially uncleared and unsettled districts.
any remote or isolated area.

Synonyms:

backwater, bush, boonies, boondocks, woodland, wild, hinterland

adjective

of or relating to the backwoods.
unsophisticated; uncouth.

backwoods British

/ ˈbækwʊdz /

plural noun

partially cleared, sparsely populated forests
any remote sparsely populated place
(modifier) of, from, or like the backwoods
(modifier) uncouth; rustic

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of backwoods

An Americanism dating back to 1700–10; back ¹ + woods ¹ (in the sense “a forest”)

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.

A hiker who was lost in the backwoods of British Columbia for more than five weeks has been found alive.

From BBC • Nov. 27, 2024

Rust Cohle slow dances with murmurings about Carcosa in Season 1, and the anthology’s creator Nic Pizzolatto spiced up the mystique by depositing backwoods fetishes near crime scenes.

From Salon • Feb. 5, 2024

Ostensibly a backwoods hoedown, “Rag Mama Rag” is a prime example of Robertson and the Band as American music alchemists.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 9, 2023

Mr. Blackstone, 56, began fighting fires during his college years when he worked as a backwoods ranger, often getting called in to help with forest fires.

From New York Times • Jun. 29, 2023

One day, some newly arrived riflemen from backwoods Virginia were walking through the yards at Harvard.

From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023