Word.ws English Dictionary

How to use piggyback in a sentence

19 example sentences · adjective, adverb, verb

Piggyback means on somebody's back or shoulders. Example: “They tried to piggyback that proposal on the rivers and harbors bill.”

Examples of piggyback by meaning

adjectiveOn somebody's back or shoulders.

  • give someone a piggyback ride

adjectivePertaining to transportation of goods where one transportation unit is carried on the back of something else. For...

  • A Montreal-Toronto "Piggyback" freight of the Canadian Pacific.1959 November, J. N. Westwood, “The Railways of Canada”, in Trains Illustrated, page 554, photo caption
  • What might be termed the psychological break-through for U.S. piggyback came in 1953-54.1960 November, David Morgan, “"Piggyback"—U.S. success story”, in Trains Illustrated, pages 681–682

adverbOn somebody's back or shoulders.

  • to ride piggyback

verbTo attach or append something to another (usually larger) object or event.

  • They tried to piggyback that proposal on the rivers and harbors bill.
  • The popular host can’t claim credit for the trade, though. The idea wasn’t his. He piggybacked off another successful investor who had a history of picking winners.
  • Piggybacking on that last part, the ugly business of the critique.2011 Allen Gregory, "1 Night in Gottlieb" (season 1, episode 2)

verbTo transport (a lorry/truck) on a flatbed railway wagon.

  • American railroads are not permitted to operate long-haul road routes, but the I.C.C. decision of 1954 did permit them to solicit trailer business in, say, New York for Chicago provided the trailer was piggybacked in between.1960 November, David Morgan, “"Piggyback"—U.S. success story”, in Trains Illustrated, page 683

nounAn act or instance of piggybacking.

  • The growth is taken for granted; what absorbs Americans today is the implication of piggyback for gross revenues and, more important, net profits.1960 November, David Morgan, “"Piggyback"—U.S. success story”, in Trains Illustrated, page 683
  • The GOP had done its homework prior to bargaining for these piggybacks.2000, Craig Allen, Eisenhower and the Mass Media: Peace, Prosperity, and Prime-time TV

nounThe connection of one intravenous drip to another.

  • Certain IV drugs, whether given by piggyback or through a metered-dose infusion set, may be incompatible with an existing continuous IV infusion.2009, Diane S. Aschenbrenner, Samantha J. Venable, Drug Therapy in Nursing, page 34

More sentences with piggyback

  • Piggybacking on others' innovations seems to be his only plan for success.From the entry piggybacking
  • The county introduced a piggyback tax on top of the state income tax.From the entry piggyback tax
  • No piggybacking or other horseplay is allowed in the hallways.From the entry piggybacking
  • You know how much the kids love your piggyback rides.2018 June 26, Freddy MacKay, Angel Martinez, Fireworks and Stolen Kisses, Totally Entwined Group (USA+CAD), →ISBN. From the entry uppies
  • Piggybacking introduced severe clearance problems for many railroads.1960 November, David Morgan, “""Piggyback"—U.S. success story”, in Trains Illustrated, page 684. From the entry clearance
  • Accordingly, automobiles aboard piggyback flats are usually coupled into the train 15 or more cars behind the locomotive; and telltales have been raised.1960 November, David Morgan, “"Piggyback"—U.S. success story”, in Trains Illustrated, page 684. From the entry flat
  • Security seal use applies when carrying merchandise in semi-truck trailers (highway trailers) pulled by semi-tractors and when railroad flatcars carry the trailers, the latter referred to as piggyback (piggybacking).2008, Raymond P. Siljander, Introduction to Business and Industrial Security and Loss Control, 2nd edition, page 75. From the entry semi-tractor
  • At least three companies (including two carbuilders) lease the latest piggyback cars to individual railroads, which enables the carriers to escape a capital investment or obligation for debt service.1960 November, David Morgan, “"Piggyback"—U.S. success story”, in Trains Illustrated, page 687. From the entry carbuilder

Meaning of piggyback

  1. adjective On somebody's back or shoulders.
  2. adjective Pertaining to transportation of goods where one transportation unit is carried on the back of something else. For example, a truck on a train.
  3. adjective Attached or appended to something larger or more important.

Full definition of piggyback

Questions about piggyback in a sentence

How do you use piggyback in a sentence?
Piggyback is used as an adjective, adverb and verb. For example: “They tried to piggyback that proposal on the rivers and harbors bill.”
What is a short sentence with piggyback?
“to ride piggyback”
What does piggyback mean?
Piggyback means on somebody's back or shoulders.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: piggyback (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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Cite this page: “How to use piggyback in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/piggyback. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.