Backpack
/ˈbæk.pæk/noun
A bag with two shoulder straps for carrying items on the back.
Did you know?Unlike words like mortgage or disaster, backpack has no hidden occult root—it’s a straightforward compound of back + pack, first recorded in the 20th century as a practical name for a bag carried on the back.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
bæc
“the back of the body”
Middle English
ME
pakke
“a bundle, parcel, or pack”
Early Modern English
English
back pack
“a pack carried on the back”
20th Century
English
backpack
“a single-word compound for a bag worn on the back”
Modern English
English
backpack
“a bag with shoulder straps worn on the back”