BACKED AWAY Synonyms: 44 Similar and Opposite Words

backed away

verb

past tense of back away

as in withdrew

to move back or away (as from something difficult, dangerous, or disagreeable) backed away from the snake very slowly and carefully

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of backed away But Datko added the coach backed away from the threatened benching. — Jackson Thompson Outkick, FOXNews.com, 23 Oct. 2026 About 10 seconds after the first officer approached, Villegas Gonzalez put his car in reverse and backed away from them. — Sabrina Franza, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026 Prices for diesel, the workhorse fuel that powers trucks, tractors, trains and construction vehicles, hit all-time highs last month but has since backed away a bit. — Matt Egan, CNN Money, 2 Oct. 2026 Mamdani made a rent freeze one of his signature issues on the campaign trail, but has backed away from making many public statements about it as mayor, under the threat of legal action. — Josephine Stratman, New York Daily News, 1 Oct. 2026 Some progressives, including Mamdani and Ocasio-Cortez, have backed away from their earlier support of police defunding. — Tracy Grant, Encyclopedia Britannica, 18 Sep. 2026 Family offices were able to make opportunistic plays in oil and gas in the years after the Covid pandemic as traditional investors backed away from the sector due to pressure from environmentally conscious stakeholders. — Hayley Cuccinello, CNBC, 10 Sep. 2026 And the Justice Department has backed away from the federal government’s long-standing interpretation of a landmark Supreme Court ruling protecting the right of disabled people to receive services in their communities. — Mike Hixenbaugh, NBC news, 8 Sep. 2026 Traditional fashion media may have backed away from harsh sartorial criticism, but the internet certainly hasn’t. — Derek C. Blasberg, Vanity Fair, 27 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for backed away

Verb

In July, Cooper withdrew her petition to sponsor Jean Louis' visa, according to documents reviewed by Fox29.

— Robert McGreevy, FOXNews.com, 27 Oct. 2026
As that enormous dome thinned through the Holocene, its margin withdrew up onto Baffin Island, and what’s left today is the deflated core of something that was once two miles thick.

— Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of withdrew

Verb

Henderson had retired from the sheriff’s office about five months before the crash and was working as a special deputy directing traffic near the University of Cincinnati during graduation.

— Minyvonne Burke, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2026
OpenAI brought GPT-4o back following the backlash but retired it in February 2026.

— Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of retired

Verb

Czechia pulled out of the event this month, but its public broadcaster cited budget cuts as the reason.

— Shira Li Bartov, Sun Sentinel, 28 Oct. 2026
Chicago police said the victim was in the street, involved in an argument with another person who pulled out a gun and shot the victim in the leg and abdomen.

— Jeramie Bizzle, CBS News, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of pulled out

Browse Nearby Words

backed

backed away

backed down

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“Backed away.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backed%20away. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of backed away

verb

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