(computer science) a copy of a file or directory on a separate storage device; "he made a backup in case the original was accidentally damaged or erased"
an accumulation caused by clogging or a stoppage; "a traffic backup on the main street"; "he discovered a backup in the toilet"
the service (electric power or water or transportation) provided by a public utility; "the cost of utilities never decreases"; "all the utilities were lost after the hurricane"
a facility composed of one or more pieces of equipment connected to or part of a structure and designed to provide a service such as heat or electricity or water or sewage disposal; "the price of the house included all utilities"
the quality of being of practical use
a company that performs a public service; subject to government regulation
(economics) a measure that is to be maximized in any situation involving choice
drawing a comparison in order to show a similarity in some respect; "the operation of a computer presents and interesting analogy to the working of the brain"; "the models show by analogy how matter is built up"
an inference that if things agree in some respects they probably agree in others