against a backdrop of something• And against a backdrop of needs for housing and jobs, the idea of saving trees and wildlife may seem superfluous.• The debate in Congress comes against a backdrop ofcomplaints over the high cost of independentcounselinvestigations.• Unhappily-married Cape Town journalist Toni Balser finds true love against a backdrop of gruesome township violence.• The action must take place against a backdrop of some description, even if it it is a blank black curtain.• The clarity of light throws everything into sharp relief against a backdrop of clear blue sky.• I photographed them against a backdrop ofdistantvolcanoes using a yellowfilter to accentuate the wispy white cloudsabove.• With the Clintons, such masterfulperformances can seem surreal, since they inevitably unfoldagainst a backdrop ofturmoil and controversy.