Word.ws English Dictionary

back-bone

back-bone is the alternative spelling of backbone.

Meaning of backbone

Noun

backbone (countable and uncountable, plural backbones)

  1. (countable) The series of vertebrae, separated by disks, that encloses and protects the spinal cord, and runs down the middle of the back in vertebrate animals.
  2. (countable, figuratively) Any fundamental support, structure, or infrastructure.
    • Before automobiles, railroads were a backbone of commerce.
  3. (figuratively, uncountable) Courage, fortitude, or strength.
    • He would make a good manager, if he had a little more backbone.

Forms of back-bone

pluralback-bones

Questions about back-bone

What is back-bone the alternative spelling of?
Back-bone is the alternative spelling of backbone.

Words near back-bone in the dictionary

  1. back-bites
  2. back-biting
  3. back-bitten
  4. back-block
  5. back-blocks
  6. back-bone
  7. back-bones
  8. back-breaking
  9. back-build
  10. back-building
  11. back-builds

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: back-bone (page history and authors); backbone (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “back-bone.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/back-bone. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.