1
: a refund of duties especially on an imported product subsequently exported or used to produce a product for export
2
: an objectionable feature : disadvantage
The plan's only drawback is its cost.
drew back; drawn back; drawing back; draws back
: to avoid an issue or commitment
Synonyms
Examples of drawback in a Sentence
Noun
The trip sounds great, but cost is a major drawback.
this plan has only one drawback: it's unworkable
Recent Examples on the Web
Aj Jacobs, TIME, 13 May 2024
Traditional approaches such as antihistamines and nasal sprays offer only temporary relief and allergy shots come with significant drawbacks including high costs, inconvenience, and discomfort associated with frequent medical visits.
—Molly Peck, USA TODAY, 10 May 2024
One drawback of recombinant adenoviral vector vaccines is that people may require booster shots over time.
—Anju Goel, Verywell Health, 9 May 2024
That, however, introduces one of the only drawbacks of chickens—their bathroom habits.
—Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 4 May 2024
And the reality is that, when a screening test has both substantial benefits and drawbacks, different task forces, comprised of different members, may reach different conclusions.
—Barron H. Lerner, STAT, 2 May 2024
The only drawback to finding some humanity in the District would be that directors might become less eager to annihilate it.
—Alan Zilberman, Washington Post, 17 Apr. 2024
Another drawback is potentially damaging your professional reputation.
—Johnny C. Taylor Jr., USA TODAY, 16 Apr. 2024
The only drawback is not being able to be at every stage at the same time.
—Lily Moayeri, SPIN, 15 Apr. 2024
Chris Willman, Variety, 10 May 2024
Every time Perry tried to film the scene, Faye drew back from thrashing the little girl.
—Lizz Schumer, Peoplemag, 6 May 2024
Australian writer-director Robert Connolly had a domestic hit in 2021 with The Dry, a slow-burn murder mystery built around Eric Bana’s somber performance as a pensive city cop drawn back to the remote town of his childhood in the middle of a prolonged drought.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 May 2024
No matter how much the Iranian-Israeli conflict escalates, the Arab states are not likely to draw back from these forms of engagement.
—Dalia Dassa Kaye, Foreign Affairs, 26 Apr. 2024
When thinking about avenues to mend some of today's divisions, alums of the Sanders 2020 campaign draw back on Biden's willingness to collaborate four years ago.
—Elena Moore, NPR, 12 Apr. 2024
Following Hamas’s October 7 attack, however, the United States was abruptly and unexpectedly drawn back into the region.
—Steven Simon, Foreign Affairs, 9 Apr. 2024
When Izi's son falls ill, he's drawn back into a life of crime with a heist that promises to change their lives forever.
—Travis Bean, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
The Best Picture nominee finds the trio drawn back together following the death of Penn's daughter, Kate (Emmy Rossum) — and things only get more devastating from there.
—Derek Lawrence, EW.com, 5 Mar. 2024
Noun
In response, Robo-Madison gave seven paragraphs on the benefits and drawbacks of applying the Second Amendment to modern weapons.
—Aj Jacobs, TIME, 13 May 2024
Traditional approaches such as antihistamines and nasal sprays offer only temporary relief and allergy shots come with significant drawbacks including high costs, inconvenience, and discomfort associated with frequent medical visits.
—Molly Peck, USA TODAY, 10 May 2024
One drawback of recombinant adenoviral vector vaccines is that people may require booster shots over time.
—Anju Goel, Verywell Health, 9 May 2024
That, however, introduces one of the only drawbacks of chickens—their bathroom habits.
—Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 4 May 2024
And the reality is that, when a screening test has both substantial benefits and drawbacks, different task forces, comprised of different members, may reach different conclusions.
—Barron H. Lerner, STAT, 2 May 2024
The only drawback to finding some humanity in the District would be that directors might become less eager to annihilate it.
—Alan Zilberman, Washington Post, 17 Apr. 2024
Another drawback is potentially damaging your professional reputation.
—Johnny C. Taylor Jr., USA TODAY, 16 Apr. 2024
The only drawback is not being able to be at every stage at the same time.
—Lily Moayeri, SPIN, 15 Apr. 2024
Verb
She’s drawn back to a seminal moment in her childhood.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 10 May 2024
Every time Perry tried to film the scene, Faye drew back from thrashing the little girl.
—Lizz Schumer, Peoplemag, 6 May 2024
Australian writer-director Robert Connolly had a domestic hit in 2021 with The Dry, a slow-burn murder mystery built around Eric Bana’s somber performance as a pensive city cop drawn back to the remote town of his childhood in the middle of a prolonged drought.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 May 2024
No matter how much the Iranian-Israeli conflict escalates, the Arab states are not likely to draw back from these forms of engagement.
—Dalia Dassa Kaye, Foreign Affairs, 26 Apr. 2024
When thinking about avenues to mend some of today's divisions, alums of the Sanders 2020 campaign draw back on Biden's willingness to collaborate four years ago.
—Elena Moore, NPR, 12 Apr. 2024
Following Hamas’s October 7 attack, however, the United States was abruptly and unexpectedly drawn back into the region.
—Steven Simon, Foreign Affairs, 9 Apr. 2024
When Izi's son falls ill, he's drawn back into a life of crime with a heist that promises to change their lives forever.
—Travis Bean, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
The Best Picture nominee finds the trio drawn back together following the death of Penn's daughter, Kate (Emmy Rossum) — and things only get more devastating from there.
—Derek Lawrence, EW.com, 5 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'drawback.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near drawback
Cite this Entry
“Drawback.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/drawback. Accessed 19 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
drawback
noun
draw·back
ˈdrȯ-ˌbak 
: an undesirable feature : disadvantage entry 1
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