backwater

English

Alternative forms

• back water
• back-water

Noun

backwater (plural backwaters)

1. The water held back by a dam or other obstruction
2. (idiomatic) A remote place; somewhere that remains unaffected by new events, progresses, ideas, etc.
   • 1978, National Opera Association - The Opera Journal page 29

     It's a volume for those who delight in exploring the backwaters of nineteenth-century opera

3. A rowing stroke in which the oar is pushed forward to stop the boat; see back water

Synonyms

• (small, backwards place): jerkwater town, one-horse town, Podunk
• See Wikisaurus:remote place

Translations

The water held back by a dam or other obstruction

• Hungarian: visszaduzzasztás (hu)
• Italian: acqua di invaso (it)

• Russian: подпор (ru) (podpór) m , заводь (ru) (závod’) f 
• Spanish: remanso (es) m

a remote place; somewhere that remains unaffected by new events, progresses, ideas, etc.

• French: patelin (fr) m
• Hungarian: porfészek (hu)
• Norwegian: bakevje (no) m and f
• Russian: застой (ru) (zastój) m , захолустье (ru) (zaxolúst’je) n , глушь (ru) (gluš’) f , глубинка (ru) (glubínka) f 

• Serbo-Croatian: мртво море (sh) (mrtvo more)
• Spanish: patelín (es) m

A rowing stroke in which the oar is pushed forward to stop the boat

• Russian: гребок (ru) m (grebok) навстречу (ru) (navstreču) (grebók navstréču)

Verb

backwater (third-person singular simple present backwaters, present participle backwatering, simple past and past participle backwatered)

1. To row or paddle a backwater stroke.
2. (idiomatic) To vacillate on a long-held position.

Translations

To row or paddle a backwater stroke

• Russian: грести (ru) (gresti) навстречу (ru) (navstreču)

to vacillate on a long-held position