Backstairs
adj, noun ·2 syllables ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A staircase at the rear of a building or one normally only used by servants and tradesmen. plural, plural-only
"Here I diſcovered the ſecret Cauſes of many great Events that have ſurprized the World, how a Whore can govern the Back-ſtairs, the Back-ſtairs a Council, and the Council a Senate."
- 2 a second staircase at the rear of a building wordnet
- 3 An indirect or furtive means of access or intercourse. plural, plural-only
"The straight-forward course, they say, would be to proclaim outright, instead of trying to bring it in by the backstairs."
- 1 Secret or furtive.
"[…] if some peers (I am very sorry they are not as many as they ought to be) set themselves, in the great concern of peers and commons, against a back-stairs influence and clandestine government, then the alarm begins; then the constitution is in danger of being forced into an aristocracy."
- 2 Scandalous.
- 1 secret and sly or sordid wordnet
Example
More examples"Here I diſcovered the ſecret Cauſes of many great Events that have ſurprized the World, how a Whore can govern the Back-ſtairs, the Back-ſtairs a Council, and the Council a Senate."
Etymology
From back + stairs.
More for "backstairs"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.