RETIREMENT Synonyms: 14 Similar and Opposite Words

retirement

noun

ri-ˈtī(-ə)r-mənt

Definition of retirement

as in withdrawal

an act of moving away especially from something difficult, dangerous, or disagreeable military historians have blamed the defeat on that battalion's retirement from the front lines

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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 retirement But retirement also means selling all eight of his trucks and laying off workers. — Rachel Siegel, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026 The company did not name a successor or specify a retirement date. — Fortune Editors, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026 Having first revealed her AMD diagnosis in 2012, which is a disease that blurs a person’s central vision by causing damage to the macula, Dench has discussed her potential retirement in recent years. — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 23 Oct. 2026 But, when the redistricting was announced, Cohen, who is seventy-seven, announced his retirement. — Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, New Yorker, 22 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for retirement

Recent Examples of Synonyms for retirement

Noun

Hong ultimately lost the primary election to Crowley by less than a percentage point following Barnes’s withdrawal from the race at the eleventh hour.

— Hailey Bullis, The Washington Examiner, 22 Oct. 2026
Agriculture accounts for around 72% of the world’s freshwater withdrawals, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

— Adhum Carter Wolde-Lule, Fortune, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of withdrawal

Noun

Sylge, who has spent the last 30 years attending and organizing health and wellness retreats around the world, developed this exercise to help people reclaim their time.

— Margaret Cirino, NPR, 23 Oct. 2026
Even if oil prices retreat, fares are unlikely to return to pre conflict levels.

— , CNBC, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of retreat

Browse Nearby Words

retire (from)

retirement

retirements

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Retirement.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/retirement. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of retirement

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on retirement

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

grotesque

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes