as in to backtrack
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Recent Examples of backpedal
Namely, making a downhill defender have to turn on a dime and sprint uphill, backpedaling between wing and prayer.
—
Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 3 Feb. 2025
But Kennedy and Gabbard are obviously trying to backpedal just enough to get confirmed without any true change in their worldviews.
—The Editors, National Review, 31 Jan. 2025
Dozens of shareholders representing $266 billion in assets are calling on Walmart to spell out the business reasons for backpedaling on the retailer's diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
—Kate Gibson, CBS News, 16 Jan. 2025
Simone prods for reconciliation or at least an explanation, but Phaedra doesn’t backpedal.
—Shelby Stewart, Essence, 27 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for backpedal
Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 3 Feb. 2025
But Kennedy and Gabbard are obviously trying to backpedal just enough to get confirmed without any true change in their worldviews.
—The Editors, National Review, 31 Jan. 2025
Dozens of shareholders representing $266 billion in assets are calling on Walmart to spell out the business reasons for backpedaling on the retailer's diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
—Kate Gibson, CBS News, 16 Jan. 2025
Simone prods for reconciliation or at least an explanation, but Phaedra doesn’t backpedal.
—Shelby Stewart, Essence, 27 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for backpedal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backpedal
Verb
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Readers can backtrack to a specific choice and go in a different direction.—
Rob Wieland,
Forbes,
7 Mar. 2025
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In the early days of the second Trump administration, prominent donors like Mark Zuckerberg have enthusiastically backtracked on their own DEI policies.—
David Campbell,
The Conversation,
4 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Cassidy, chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, extended Kennedy multiple lifelines to retract unproven claims that some vaccines could cause autism during last week’s three-hour confirmation hearing before the panel.—
Ramsey Touchberry,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
2 Feb. 2025
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But publishers are often slow to retract tainted papers, even when alerted to obvious fraud.—
Ars Technica,
Ars Technica,
31 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Those platforms almost immediately recanted those moves, which in Twitter’s case had included temporarily locking the Post’s account.—
Rob Pegoraro,
PCMAG,
21 Feb. 2025
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Nothing is wrong with the witnesses, no one recanted or died.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
19 Feb. 2025
Articles Related to backpedal
Cite this Entry
“Backpedal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backpedal. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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