'Backbone' definitions:

Definition of 'backbone'

From: WordNet
noun
A central cohesive source of support and stability; "faith is his anchor"; "the keystone of campaign reform was the ban on soft money"; "he is the linchpin of this firm" [syn: anchor, mainstay, keystone, backbone, linchpin, lynchpin]
noun
Fortitude and determination; "he didn't have the guts to try it" [syn: backbone, grit, guts, moxie, sand, gumption]
noun
The series of vertebrae forming the axis of the skeleton and protecting the spinal cord; "the fall broke his back" [syn: spinal column, vertebral column, spine, backbone, back, rachis]
noun
The part of a book's cover that encloses the inner side of the book's pages and that faces outward when the book is shelved; "the title and author were printed on the spine of the book" [syn: spine, backbone]
noun
The part of a network that connects other networks together; "the backbone is the part of a communication network that carries the heaviest traffic"

Definition of 'Backbone'

From: GCIDE
  • Backbone \Back"bone"\ (b[a^]k"b[=o]n`), n. [2d back, n. + bone.] [1913 Webster]
  • 1. The column of bones in the back which sustains and gives firmness to the frame; the spine; the vertebral or spinal column. [1913 Webster]
  • 2. Anything like, or serving the purpose of, a backbone. [1913 Webster]
  • The lofty mountains on the north side compose the granitic axis, or backbone of the country. --Darwin. [1913 Webster]
  • We have now come to the backbone of our subject. --Earle. [1913 Webster]
  • 3. Firmness; moral principle; steadfastness. [1913 Webster]
  • Shelley's thought never had any backbone. --Shairp. [1913 Webster]
  • To the backbone, through and through; thoroughly; entirely. "Staunch to the backbone." --Lord Lytton. [1913 Webster]

Synonyms of 'backbone'

From: Moby Thesaurus

Words containing 'Backbone'