a strong bag with two shoulder straps that you carry on your back to hold books, clothes, or other things, especially when hiking, travelling, or going to school
The student stuffed his notebooks into his backpack before catching the morning bus.
When the rain started, she pulled a folded umbrella out of her backpack.
✦ early 20th-century compound of back + pack, originally used by American outdoors enthusiasts
to travel or hike while carrying your belongings in a backpack, usually for pleasure and on a low budget
After college, she backpacked across South America for six months.
They plan to spend the summer backpacking the Appalachian Trail.
✦ verb use from the noun backpack, first recorded mid-20th century
the activity of walking for one or more days while carrying all the clothes, food, and equipment you need in a backpack
They spent two weeks backpacking across the Appalachian Trail.
I love backpacking because it lets me disconnect from my phone and enjoy nature.
✦ from the verb "backpack" + the gerund suffix "-ing", first recorded in the mid-20th century to describe multi-day hiking with a frame pack
the practice of traveling long distances, often internationally, carrying a single backpack and spending as little money as possible
After college, he spent a year backpacking through Southeast Asia on a shoestring budget.
Hostel rooms and street food make backpacking affordable for many young travelers.
✦ extension of the outdoor sense of "backpacking" to economical global travel that became popular among young adults in the late 20th century
a person who travels from place to place carrying all their belongings in a backpack and trying to spend as little money as possible
The young backpacker cooked noodles on a tiny stove outside the hostel.
Every backpacker I met in Thailand shared stories about hidden beaches.
✦ formed from backpack + -er in the mid-20th century to describe budget travelers who carried their gear on their backs
a person who hikes or camps in wild areas carrying all necessary food and gear in a backpack
Each summer, dozens of backpackers follow the trail into the Grand Canyon.
The experienced backpacker checked her map before crossing the river.
✦ by extension of the travel sense to wilderness hiking in the late 20th century
