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{%type%} Definitions

WordNet 3.0Copyright Princeton University
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Short "hint"

Any of various strengthening or supporting devices at the rear

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Usage examples (28)
  • What the "backstay" is to the inhabitant of the district around Lydd, the stilts are to the lonely dwellers in the Landes.
  • The man got out by the royal backstay, and lit his flare.
  • Once I cleared the backstay, I surfaced, and I was right next to Steve.
  • Tathagres paused in the stern, a hand posed on the backstay for balance.
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The Open Dictionary of English is a collaborative project, based on Open Source materials, LearnThat resources, and partner APIs.
We give special thanks to our LearnThat volunteers, as well as Princeton University and Wiktionary for their Open Source word data. We're also grateful for the support given by Google, Wordnik.com, Dictionary.com, Stands4.com and YouTube, OEDILF.com, Kylescholz.com, Best-Practice.com, Forvo.com, as well as the generous Creative Commons community.