as in to back out
to break a promise or agreement
if you back down about dinner again, I'm not going to agree to another date
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of back down
In the gondola on the way back down the mountain to Telluride, Cannes Film Festival topper Thierry Frémaux hops on at the halfway station.
—
Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 4 Sep. 2025
Hold for a few seconds, and then lower back down with control.
—Jakob Roze, Health, 2 Sep. 2025
Campbell last played for Boston in June before the MLB club sent him back down to Triple-A Worcester.
—Tim Crowley, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Sep. 2025
But that brief period of openness and luxury ended quickly, with international sanctions clamping back down in 2003.
—Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 1 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for back down
Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 4 Sep. 2025
Hold for a few seconds, and then lower back down with control.
—Jakob Roze, Health, 2 Sep. 2025
Campbell last played for Boston in June before the MLB club sent him back down to Triple-A Worcester.
—Tim Crowley, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Sep. 2025
But that brief period of openness and luxury ended quickly, with international sanctions clamping back down in 2003.
—Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 1 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for back down
Recent Examples of Synonyms for back down
Verb
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Or maybe sign Cameron Latu off the Philadelphia Eagles practice squad (Barrows slowly backs out of the room).—
Matt Barrows,
New York Times,
10 Sep. 2025
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The industry chews people up and spits them (and their dreams) right back out.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The district backed off from any moves that might be seen as undermining its magnet or selective enrollment programs.—
Mila Koumpilova,
ProPublica,
9 Sep. 2025
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More stocks are down than up on the day, but big banks are too strong to permit the indexes to back off, along with a couple of Mag7 names and UnitedHealth Group.—
Michael Santoli,
CNBC,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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On Thursday, there were 652 officers on the force, with nearly 100 cops out on some kind of administrative or medical leave.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
8 Aug. 2025
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But with that brief wave of hope came new footage on Twitter every night of the NYPD acting like bad cops out of a Harvey Keitel flick: cops harassing peaceful crowds, cops kettling activists, cops literally driving a car into a crowd of protestors.—
Maris Kreizman,
Rolling Stone,
24 June 2025
Verb
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Burn hazards, meaning use of the product could lead to burns, were behind 294 recalls in the same time frame.—
Jasmine Laws,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Sep. 2025
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On the red carpet at the Jazz at Lincoln Center, Bonneville recalls finding out about Dockery's exciting news.—
Gabrielle Rockson,
PEOPLE,
9 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Back down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/back%20down. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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