as in to back out
to break a promise or agreement
if you back down about dinner again, I'm not going to agree to another date
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of back down
Tortorella brings the reputation into the veteran locker room of a fiery coach who doesn't back down from confrontations, often winning early before later wearing thin with his players.
—
ABC News, 29 Mar. 2026
Lower the weight back down to mid-shin by pushing your hips back.
—Jim Diehl Cscs, Outside, 29 Mar. 2026
David Peterson, 24, and Cassidy Becker, 23, continued protesting without backing down.
—Arizona Republic, AZCentral.com, 28 Mar. 2026
Plato briefly stirred to life to announce that there had never been such a thing as a Department of Education, then shut back down.
—Alexandra Petri, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for back down
ABC News, 29 Mar. 2026
Lower the weight back down to mid-shin by pushing your hips back.
—Jim Diehl Cscs, Outside, 29 Mar. 2026
David Peterson, 24, and Cassidy Becker, 23, continued protesting without backing down.
—Arizona Republic, AZCentral.com, 28 Mar. 2026
Plato briefly stirred to life to announce that there had never been such a thing as a Department of Education, then shut back down.
—Alexandra Petri, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for back down
Recent Examples of Synonyms for back down
Verb
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So if officials back out of the project, Rosenburgh said the NCDOT board will question other projects for the Charlotte area.—
Desiree Mathurin
March 27,
Charlotte Observer,
27 Mar. 2026
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The ice is naturally reflective, sending some of the sun’s rays back out to space.—
Andrea Thompson,
Scientific American,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Less than a month later, TSA committed to boost staffing, and Southwell backed off his threat.—
Kelly Yamanouchi,
AJC.com,
25 Mar. 2026
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Treasury yields and the dollar retreated, with traders backing off some of their more hawkish Federal Reserve bets, pricing in a few basis points worth of easing this year.—
Bloomberg Wire,
Dallas Morning News,
23 Mar. 2026
Verb
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To say these machines are too expense is a cop out.—
Boston Herald editorial staff,
Boston Herald,
7 Mar. 2026
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Rather than throwing those bad cops out of the union and asking for better training so cops will never have to ask what to do when a fellow cop appears to have broken the law, Hendry encourages them.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
25 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The ex-governor, who was recalled in 2003 and replaced by Arnold Schwarzenegger, acknowledged his comments won’t please Democrats worried about the party’s large field splintering support, resulting in two Republicans advancing to the November runoff.—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Mercury News,
28 Mar. 2026
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Carter recalled Bethany saying.—
Chelsea Bailey,
CNN Money,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Back down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/back%20down. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
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