"backbreaking" meaning in English

See backbreaking in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Adjective

Forms: more backbreaking [comparative], most backbreaking [superlative]
Etymology: From back + breaking. Etymology templates: {{compound|en|back|breaking}} back + breaking Head templates: {{en-adj}} backbreaking (comparative more backbreaking, superlative most backbreaking)
  1. (figuratively) Of work, very physically tiring. Tags: figuratively Synonyms: back-breaking Derived forms: backbreakingly Translations (of work, very physically tiring): uuvuttava (Finnish), fárasztó (Hungarian), kimerítő (Hungarian), lýjandi (Icelandic), erfiður (Icelandic), estenuante (Italian), massacrante (Italian), arcytrudny (Polish)

Alternative forms

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  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "back",
        "3": "breaking"
      },
      "expansion": "back + breaking",
      "name": "compound"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "From back + breaking.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "more backbreaking",
      "tags": [
        "comparative"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "most backbreaking",
      "tags": [
        "superlative"
      ]
    }
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  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "backbreaking (comparative more backbreaking, superlative most backbreaking)",
      "name": "en-adj"
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  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "adj",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
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        }
      ],
      "derived": [
        {
          "word": "backbreakingly"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1949 May and June, R. A. H. Weight, “A Short-Lived Pacific Class”, in Railway Magazine, page 196:",
          "text": "A few keen enginemen, such as Driver Rosewarne of York, could coax good work out of them when engaged in heavy East Coast express service, but to most footplate crews, especially firemen, they were rather heartbreaking and backbreaking machines, and gradually were relegated to secondary or fast goods duties.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2019, Maaza Mengiste\n, The Shadow King, Canongate Books (2020), page 110:",
          "text": "Ahead [...] each woman is stooped beneath a backbreaking load of firewood.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Of work, very physically tiring."
      ],
      "id": "en-backbreaking-en-adj-lxz-AcCt",
      "links": [
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          "tiring",
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        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(figuratively) Of work, very physically tiring."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "back-breaking"
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      "tags": [
        "figuratively"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
          "word": "uuvuttava"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
          "word": "fárasztó"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
          "word": "kimerítő"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
          "word": "lýjandi"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
          "word": "erfiður"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
          "word": "estenuante"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
          "word": "massacrante"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
          "word": "arcytrudny"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "backbreaking"
}
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    {
      "word": "backbreakingly"
    }
  ],
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  ],
  "etymology_text": "From back + breaking.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "more backbreaking",
      "tags": [
        "comparative"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "most backbreaking",
      "tags": [
        "superlative"
      ]
    }
  ],
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        "Terms with Polish translations"
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          "ref": "1949 May and June, R. A. H. Weight, “A Short-Lived Pacific Class”, in Railway Magazine, page 196:",
          "text": "A few keen enginemen, such as Driver Rosewarne of York, could coax good work out of them when engaged in heavy East Coast express service, but to most footplate crews, especially firemen, they were rather heartbreaking and backbreaking machines, and gradually were relegated to secondary or fast goods duties.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2019, Maaza Mengiste\n, The Shadow King, Canongate Books (2020), page 110:",
          "text": "Ahead [...] each woman is stooped beneath a backbreaking load of firewood.",
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        }
      ],
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        "Of work, very physically tiring."
      ],
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        "(figuratively) Of work, very physically tiring."
      ],
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        "figuratively"
      ]
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  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "back-breaking"
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  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
      "word": "uuvuttava"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
      "word": "fárasztó"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
      "word": "kimerítő"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
      "word": "lýjandi"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
      "word": "erfiður"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
      "word": "estenuante"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
      "word": "massacrante"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "of work, very physically tiring",
      "word": "arcytrudny"
    }
  ],
  "word": "backbreaking"
}

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This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-12-21 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-12-04 using wiktextract (d8cb2f3 and 4e554ae). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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