backbreaking

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back·break·ing

(băk′brā′kĭng)

adj.

Demanding great exertion; arduous and exhausting.

back′break′er n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

backbreaking

(ˈbækˌbreɪkɪŋ)

adj

demanding great effort; exhausting

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

back•break•ing

(ˈbækˌbreɪ kɪŋ)

adj.

demanding great effort, endurance, etc.: a backbreaking job.

[1780–90]

back′break`er, n.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Adj.

backbreaking - characterized by effort to the point of exhaustion; especially physical effort; "worked their arduous way up the mining valley"; "a grueling campaign"; "hard labor"; "heavy work"; "heavy going"; "spent many laborious hours on the project"; "set a punishing pace"

arduous, grueling, gruelling, laborious, operose, toilsome, punishing, hard, heavy

effortful - requiring great physical effort

backbreaking

adjective

Requiring great or extreme bodily, mental, or spiritual strength:

arduous, burdensome, demanding, difficult, effortful, exacting, exigent, formidable, hard, heavy, laborious, onerous, oppressive, rigorous, rough, severe, taxing, tough, trying, weighty.

Translations

قاصِم للظَّهْر

vyčerpávající

opslidende

erschöpfend

éreintant

fárasztókimerítő

lÿjandi, erfiîur

massacrante

slitsom

çok yorucuçok zor

艰苦繁重的非常辛劳的

backbreaking

[ˈbækˌbreɪkɪŋ] adj (work, task) → massacrante

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

back

(bӕk) noun

1. in man, the part of the body from the neck to the bottom of the spine. She lay on her back.

2. in animals, the upper part of the body. She put the saddle on the horse's back.

3. that part of anything opposite to or furthest from the front. the back of the house; She sat at the back of the hall.

4. in football, hockey etc a player who plays behind the forwards.

adjective

of or at the back. the back door.

adverb

1. to, or at, the place or person from which a person or thing came. I went back to the shop; He gave the car back to its owner.

2. away (from something); not near (something). Move back! Let the ambulance get to the injured man; Keep back from me or I'll hit you!

3. towards the back (of something). Sit back in your chair.

4. in return; in response to. When the teacher is scolding you, don't answer back.

5. to, or in, the past. Think back to your childhood.

verb

1. to (cause to) move backwards. He backed (his car) out of the garage.

2. to help or support. Will you back me against the others?

3. to bet or gamble on. I backed your horse to win.

ˈbacker noun

a person who supports someone or something, especially with money. the backer of the new theatre.

ˈbackbite verb

to criticize a person when he is not present.

ˈbackbiting noun

Constant backbiting by her colleagues led to her resignation.

ˈbackbone noun

1. the spine. the backbone of a fish.

2. the chief support. The older employees are the backbone of the industry.

ˈbackbreaking adjective

(of a task etc) very difficult or requiring very hard work. Digging the garden is a backbreaking job.

ˌbackˈdate verb

1. to put an earlier date on (a cheque etc). He should have paid his bill last month and so he has backdated the cheque.

2. to make payable from a date in the past. Our rise in pay was backdated to April.

ˌbackˈfire verb

1. (of a motor-car etc) to make a loud bang because of unburnt gases in the exhaust system. The car backfired.

2. (of a plan etc) to have unexpected results, often opposite to the intended results. His scheme backfired (on him), and he lost money.

ˈbackground noun

1. the space behind the principal or most important figures or objects of a picture etc. He always paints ships against a background of stormy skies; trees in the background of the picture.

2. happenings that go before, and help to explain, an event etc. the background to a situation.

3. a person's origins, education etc. She was ashamed of her humble background.

ˈbackhand noun

1. in tennis etc, a stroke or shot with the back of one's hand turned towards the ball. a clever backhand; His backhand is very strong.

2. writing with the letters sloping backwards. I can always recognize her backhand.

adverb

using backhand. She played the stroke backhand; She writes backhand.

ˈbacklog noun

a pile of uncompleted work etc which has collected. a backlog of orders because of the strike.

ˌback-ˈnumber noun

an out-of-date copy or issue of a magazine etc. He collects back-numbers of comic magazines.

ˈbackpack noun

(especially American) a bag that walkers, people who go on trips, or students carry on their backs.

ˈbackpacking: go backpacking

to go on trips or go camping carrying a backpack.

ˈbackpacker noun

ˈbackside noun

the bottom or buttocks. He sits on his backside all day long and does no work.

ˈbackslash noun

the sign (\).

ˈbackstroke noun

in swimming, a stroke made when lying on one's back in the water. The child is good at backstroke.

ˈbackup noun

1. additional people who provide help when it is needed. The police officer requested some backup when the shooting began.

2. a copy of a computer file that can be used in case the original is destroyed.

3. (also adjective) a piece of equipment, a system etc that can be used when there is a problem with the original one. a backup plan; We have a backup generator in case the power fails.

ˈbackwash noun

1. a backward current eg that following a ship's passage through the water. the backwash of the steamer.

2. the unintentional results of an action, situation etc. The backwash of that firm's financial troubles affected several other firms.

ˈbackwater noun

1. a stretch of river not in the main stream.

2. a place not affected by what is happening in the world outside. That village is rather a backwater.

ˌbackˈyard noun

(especially American) a garden at the back of a house etc. He grows vegetables in his backyard.

back down

to give up one's opinion, claim etc. She backed down in the face of strong opposition.

back of

(American) behind. He parked back of the store.

back on to

(of a building etc) to have its back next to (something). My house backs on to the racecourse.

back out

1. to move out backwards. He opened the garage door and backed (his car) out.

2. to withdraw from a promise etc. You promised to help – you mustn't back out now!

back up

1. to support or encourage. The new evidence backed up my arguments.

2. to make a copy of the information stored on the computer or disk.

have one's back to the wall

to be in a very difficult or desperate situation. He certainly has his back to the wall as he has lost his job and cannot find another one.

put someone's back up

to anger someone. He put my back up with his boasting.

take a back seat

to take an unimportant position. At these discussions he always takes a back seat and listens to others talking.

Mentioned in ?

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