Word.ws English Dictionary

How to use backbone in a sentence

40 example sentences · noun

Backbone means 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. Example: “Before automobiles, railroads were a backbone of commerce.”

Examples of backbone by meaning

nounAny fundamental support, structure, or infrastructure.

  • Before automobiles, railroads were a backbone of commerce.
  • Undoubtedly it can be said that the humble 0-6-0 has been the backbone for general service, or general utility on British railways right from their earliest days, and is likely to remain so.1945 November and December, H. C. Casserley, “Random Reflections on British Locomotive Types—1”, in Railway Magazine, page 320
  • The San Francisco AIDS Foundation (SFAF) and other community-based organizations that "provide backbone and leadership" in AIDS services are "reeling under the impact of growing case loads," said Pat Christen, SFAF's new director.1989 December 10, John Zeh, “AIDS Groups' Execs Arrested In D.C.”, in Gay Community News, volume 17, number 22, page 1

nounCourage, fortitude, or strength.

  • He would make a good manager, if he had a little more backbone.
  • Show a little backbone, will ya!1981, Lawrence Kasdan, Raiders of the Lost Ark

More sentences with backbone

  • The molecule had two acetyls, four methyls, and three uridinyls attached to its backbone.From the entry uridinyl
  • This gathering machine forms the backbone of a bookbinding operation.From the entry gathering
  • All life as we know it has carbon as the backbone of many of its molecules; carbon’s tetravalence gives it special importance in biochemical molecular bonds.From the entry carbon
  • "He had the backbone to lead his caucus into a high-stakes, high risk battle.2018 January 22, Julie Pace, “Shutdown puts spotlight on Democratic leader Schumer”, in The Times of Israel, archived from the original on…. From the entry go to the mats
  • An Allosaurus backbone had a hole in which a Stegosaurus thagomizer fitted perfectly.2008 August 1, Gary Jeffrey, Stegosaurus: The Plated Dinosaur, Rosen Publishing Group, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 30. From the entry thagomizer
  • These few core memories serve well as the backbone of your longer lifewriting project.2006, Denis Ledoux, Turning Memories Into Memoirs: A Handbook for Writing Lifestories, 3rd edition, Lisbon Falls, Me.: Soleil Press…. From the entry core memory
  • I have the womb to be a parent, but not the backbone.2006 January 29, Tom Armstrong, Marvin (comic). From the entry holy terror
  • It's twenty-five, and more than capable of exposing a man's backbone.”2003, Mary Hawkins, Australian Outback: Four Journeys to a New Country Ride on the Wings of Faith and Love, page 47. From the entry Botany Bay dozen
  • There had been a time when I had regarded Sheenas as the backbone of England.1995, John le Carré, Our Game, Knopf, published 1995, →ISBN, page 30. From the entry Sheena
  • With all the tenderloin, spareribs and backbones, we lived “high off the hog”.1912, George S. Jack, Edward Boyle Jacobs, History of Roanoke County,, page 29. From the entry high on the hog
  • In temperament he was Dutch to the backbone — at least as we imagine Dutch.1907, Alfred Thayer Mahan, From Sail to Steam: Reflections of Naval Life. From the entry to the backbone
  • My spiritual backbone stiffened, and I held my head high, looking all men in the eyes.1900, Jack London, The Dignity of Dollars. From the entry hogskin
  • Dry vermouth adds a hint of herbal backbone, but you can omit it if you don't have it on hand.2022 August 11, Ann Taylor Pittman, “Southern Pickletini”, in Southern Living, archived from the original on 21 Apr 2024. From the entry cornichon
  • In light of the above, it should be no surprise that white women are the backbone of today’s white nationalist movement.2022 May 31, Christina Cavener, “United by White Supremacy: Women's Contributions to a "Whites Only" Citizenship Across the Generations”…. From the entry Trumpette
  • Meanwhile, during all this puzzlement, those unpleasant waves, biological ripple upon nasty ripple, kept up assailment on my legs and backbone.2018, Anna Burns, Milkman, London: Faber & Faber, Part 3. From the entry assailment
  • This paper studies the nontransparency of backbones.2016, Lane A. Hemaspaandra, David E. Narváez, “The Opacity of Backbones”, in arXiv. From the entry nontransparency
  • This panoramic backbone of South Korea’s Gangwon province is a tourist destination that actually lives up to its public relations hype.2013, “Gangwon Province”, in Rebecca Lovell, editor, South Korea (Insight Guides), 10th edition, Apa Publications, →ISBN, →OCLC, pages…. From the entry Gangwon
  • For all practical purposes the old carbon arcs, which were the backbone of film lighting, are no longer used.2012, Kris Malkiewicz, Film Lighting. From the entry arc
  • The normal distribution is the backbone of traditional statistics.2012, Larry Pace, Beginning R: An Introduction to Statistical Programming, Apress, page 103. From the entry normal distribution
  • The backbone of both endocannabinoids 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) and anandamide (AEA) is the ω-6 fatty acid arachidonic acid (AA).2012 November 4, Taka, “Linoleic acid responsible for human obesity in 20th century”, in sci.life-extension (Usenet), retrieved 14 May 2022. From the entry ω-6 fatty acid
  • Wandering spiders generally attack large insects or other arthropods such as harvestmen, but some prefer to hunt vertebrates (animals with backbones).2003, various authors, “Wandering spider”, in Insects and Spiders of the World, volume 10, Marshall Cavendish, page 582. From the entry wandering spider
  • This oxymorous statement provides the backbone to Takamatsu’s architecture.1994, EAR., Department of Architecture, School of the Built Environment, University of Edinburgh, page 146. From the entry oxymorous
  • All of them have joined local mutual-aid and co-operative organizations in which they play the role of backbone and pace-setters.[1978 [1955 July 6], “The Party Branch of Yanghopa Township, Hsihsiang County, Gives Correct Leadership to Mutual Aid and Co-operation”…. From the entry Xixiang
  • This rural character became the backbone of Tseng Kuo-fan’s Hunan Army, which was recruited mainly from the hilly farm areas.[1976, Charlton M. Lewis, Prologue to the Chinese Revolution: The Transformation of Ideas and Institutions in Hunan Province, 1891-1907…. From the entry Xiangxiang
  • Headed by the president of the Children of Mary, the CIC forms the backbone of all campus activities.1950, “College Integrating Conference”, in The Nineteen Fifty Allegra, Emmitsburg, Md.: […] [T]he Seniors of Saint Joseph College, page 23. From the entry collegienne
  • Newspaper advertising is the backbone of our whole sales program.1940, ——, quoting Wesley I. Nunn (Advertising Manager, Standard Oil Company of Indiana), The Newspaper as an Advertising Medium; a…. From the entry mass medium
  • Jack Tar is an American clear through to his backbone!1918, Elaine Sterne, Over the Seas for Uncle Sam. From the entry Jack Tar
  • Given the German backbone of the European financial system, considerable Teutonophobia and dissipation of the political consensus supporting the European Union ensued.2023, Paul B. Stephan, “Cracks in the Foundation and System Shocks: Terror, the Great Recession, and the Arab Spring (2000–15)”, in The…. From the entry Teutonophobia
  • Based on a monthly average, a service level of 99% IP backbone available and capable of forwarding IP packets 99.0% of the time.2016, Andrew Hiles, E-Business Service Level Agreements, page 81. From the entry service level
  • She was a solid, nuggety little vessel, with a good pair of shoulders to her and a backbone as tough as a battleship's.2013, Colin Thiele, Blue Fin, →ISBN. From the entry nuggety
  • Although about 3% of the backbone hydrogen bonds in hemoglobin are underwrapped, nearly 50% of those of the cellular prion protein are underwrapped.2007, Vladimir N. Uversky, Anthony Fink, Protein Misfolding, Aggregation and Conformational Diseases, →ISBN. From the entry underwrapped
  • The spine is the book's backbone.1994–2014, “Rare Book Basics: Book Terms Illustrated”, in Powell's City of Books, archived from the original on 05 Jul 2014. From the entry spine
  • The Ko-chiu area in Yunnan is still the backbone of the Chinese tin industry, as it supplies about two-thirds of China's total output.[1973, Chiao-min Hsieh, ATLAS OF CHINA, McGraw-Hill, Inc., →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 97. From the entry Gejiu
  • Paterson, son of a dispossessed squatter, writing from a city office, the bushmen with their horses and simple skills were the backbone of Australia.1970, Douglas Pike, Australia: The Quiet Continent, page 230. From the entry bushman
  • For years the matriarchs of the family grew a plant they called "devil's back," short for "devil's backbone." It's considered a subtropical succulent with variegated leaves.2017 April 4, Betsy Singleton Snyder, Stepping on Cheerios: Finding God in the Chaos and Clutter of Life, Abingdon Press, →ISBN. From the entry devil's backbone

Meaning of backbone

  1. noun 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. noun Any fundamental support, structure, or infrastructure.
  3. noun Courage, fortitude, or strength.

Full definition of backbone

Questions about backbone in a sentence

How do you use backbone in a sentence?
Backbone is used as a noun. For example: “Before automobiles, railroads were a backbone of commerce.”
What is a short sentence with backbone?
“Show a little backbone, will ya!”
What does backbone mean?
Backbone means 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.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: backbone (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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