backgrounder
noun
back·ground·er
ˈbak-ˌ(g)rau̇n-dər 
1
: an off-the-record briefing for reporters
2
: something (such as an essay) that provides background information about a particular subject
She believes birds are the best model for understanding human language. But before making her argument, she offers a highly informative backgrounder on bird song.—
K. C. Cole
K. C. ColeExamples of backgrounder in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The Mandalorian, as streamed on Disney+ for three seasons, visit this excellent 20-minute YouTube video backgrounder from Looper: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sn9INA7qUew.
—Jan Wagner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 June 2026
That black helps make the shade a perfect backgrounder to leather, linen, alabaster and limestone, which are common accents in contemporary homes.
—R. Daniel Foster, Forbes.com, 3 Feb. 2026
The rest of the cast is rounded out by the kind of quirky backgrounders who also populated Dunder Mifflin.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2025
Simon Hughes covered the sentencing hearing for The Athletic, and there was an air of finality about his extensive backgrounder.
—Phil Hay, New York Times, 11 July 2025
This is a fab backgrounder by Laia Herrero on goalkeeper Diego Kochen — potentially the future of Barca and the USMNT.
—Phil Hay, The Athletic, 1 Jan. 2025
Check out the video below from The Engineers Post for a more visual backgrounder!
—New Atlas, 5 Dec. 2024
In fact, no small portion of the Royal Swedish Academy’s technical backgrounder (PDF) released to the media this morning could have been cribbed from this in-depth Spectrum consideration of nearly a quarter-century ago.
—Tekla S. Perry, IEEE Spectrum, 4 Oct. 2023
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Jan Wagner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 June 2026
That black helps make the shade a perfect backgrounder to leather, linen, alabaster and limestone, which are common accents in contemporary homes.
—R. Daniel Foster, Forbes.com, 3 Feb. 2026
The rest of the cast is rounded out by the kind of quirky backgrounders who also populated Dunder Mifflin.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2025
Simon Hughes covered the sentencing hearing for The Athletic, and there was an air of finality about his extensive backgrounder.
—Phil Hay, New York Times, 11 July 2025
This is a fab backgrounder by Laia Herrero on goalkeeper Diego Kochen — potentially the future of Barca and the USMNT.
—Phil Hay, The Athletic, 1 Jan. 2025
Check out the video below from The Engineers Post for a more visual backgrounder!
—New Atlas, 5 Dec. 2024
In fact, no small portion of the Royal Swedish Academy’s technical backgrounder (PDF) released to the media this morning could have been cribbed from this in-depth Spectrum consideration of nearly a quarter-century ago.
—Tekla S. Perry, IEEE Spectrum, 4 Oct. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Backgrounder.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/backgrounder. Accessed 16 Jun. 2026.
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