backroom

plural backrooms · alternative back room

1. A room near the rear of a premises.
   1. attributivefigurativelyoftenEspecially, one that is only accessible to a privileged few and can be used as an inconspicuous meeting place, where secrecy, anonymity, and even crooked dealings may occur.

      backroom deals

      4 more examples

      Near-synonym: smoke-filled room (meeting place of crooked insiders)

      backroom bargaining

      It is known that means of using this end of the former NLR and Broad Street station to take an overspill of traffic from Liverpool Street have been under backroom study for some time.

      1964 July, “News and Comment: The Broad Street-Richmond line”, in Modern Railways, page 17

      The vote for a new prime minister will involve plenty of backroom bargaining, while Thailand struggles to revive its faltering economy.

      2024 August 14, “Thai court dismisses PM for violating constitution”, in bbc.com

      Synonyms: smoke-filled room[insider]]s> · Antonyms: front room, foreroom, anteroom, antechamber

   2. A storeroom in the rear of the premises.

      We had thought that they were out of the old model, but somebody checked in the backroom and found a case of them.