FELL BACK Synonyms: 44 Similar and Opposite Words

fell back

verb

past tense of fall back

as in withdrew

to move back or away (as from something difficult, dangerous, or disagreeable) resistance from native forces was greater than expected, and the invading army was forced to fall back

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for fell back

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

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.

Browse Nearby Words

fell away

fell back

fell back on

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“Fell back.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fell%20back. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of fell back

verb

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