backwoods

American  

[bak-woodz] / ˈbækˈwʊdz /

noun

1. (often used with a singular verb) wooded or partially uncleared and unsettled districts.

2. any remote or isolated area.

   Synonyms:

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

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adjective

1. of or relating to the backwoods.

2. unsophisticated; uncouth.

backwoods British  

/ ˈbækwʊdz /

plural noun

1. partially cleared, sparsely populated forests

2. any remote sparsely populated place

3. (modifier) of, from, or like the backwoods

4. (modifier) uncouth; rustic

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Etymology

Origin of backwoods

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

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

backwoods

The stories from “Heart Songs” take place in backwoods Vermont, but most of Ms. Proulx’s work is set in Wyoming.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026

In the 2009 film “Get Low,” he was a backwoods hermit who staged his own funeral.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 16, 2026

Little is known about Mr Benastick's condition or how he survived in the backwoods.

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

As bougie as Grandma wants to act, according to Granddaddy she’s just “one foot out the backwoods and one toe from ignorant.”

From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas

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Related Words

• backcountry
• outback

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