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backboneless

adjective

Without a backbone; invertebrate.

Opposite

Scrabble 22

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Meanings

adjectivebackboneless (not comparable)

literallynot comparableWithout a backbone; invertebrate.
Once, like a drunken man, I lurched forward, and fell upon my knees. Such was my backboneless state that for some seconds I remained where I was, half disposed to let things slide, accept the good the gods had sent me, and make a night of it just there.
1897, Richard Marsh, The Beetle
Antonyms: backboned
figurativelynot comparableCowardly, spineless.

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectiveWithout a backbone; invertebrate.

Opposite

Also see

boneless chicken chicken-hearted cowardly craven dastardly gutless heartless invertebrate nithing ratlike spineless

Origin

From backbone + -less.

Full word history & related roots →

Cite this entry

APA

backboneless. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/backboneless

MLA

“backboneless.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/backboneless. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “backboneless,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/backboneless.

Source: backboneless on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.