backrest

Compound of back +‎ rest.

• IPA^(key): /ˈbækˌɹɛst/

• Audio (General American):

  (file)

backrest (plural backrests)

2. The back piece of a chair, used to support the sitter's back.

   Synonym: back

   • 2011, Thad Nodine, chapter 3, in Touch and Go: A Novel, [Lakewood, Colo.]: Unbridled Books, →ISBN, page 39:

     I can identify the pattern of wood grain on my chair at Mom and Dad's kitchen table, but I don't try to sketch it in my mind. For me, chairness is nonvisual; it's the feel of a seat connected to four legs and a backrest.

3. A guide attached to the slide rest of a lathe, and placed in contact with the work to steady it in turning.

• Starbeck, backster, brackets