as in to back down
to break a promise or agreement
she backed out on her offer to help with the wedding planning
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 back out
For a little less work in your front leg back out of the knee bend a bit.
—
Ingrid Yang Md, Outside Online, 29 May 2025
Liman echoed concerns raised by MTA lawyer Roberta Kaplan, who charged that the government’s arguments amounted to claiming a unilateral right to back out of any agreement by citing shifting priorities.
—Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 27 May 2025
But amid concern over the CFP selection process, the Big Ten’s Nebraska canceled a home-and-home series with Tennessee, and Sankey acknowledged that others in his conference are considering backing out of such games.
—Seth Emerson, New York Times, 27 May 2025
Eventually, Rachel backs out of the project after getting mixed up in their family drama.
—Ellise Shafer, Variety, 22 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for back out
Ingrid Yang Md, Outside Online, 29 May 2025
Liman echoed concerns raised by MTA lawyer Roberta Kaplan, who charged that the government’s arguments amounted to claiming a unilateral right to back out of any agreement by citing shifting priorities.
—Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 27 May 2025
But amid concern over the CFP selection process, the Big Ten’s Nebraska canceled a home-and-home series with Tennessee, and Sankey acknowledged that others in his conference are considering backing out of such games.
—Seth Emerson, New York Times, 27 May 2025
Eventually, Rachel backs out of the project after getting mixed up in their family drama.
—Ellise Shafer, Variety, 22 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for back out
Recent Examples of Synonyms for back out
Verb
-
Deutsche Bank's Binky Chadha is bullish again, confident that the Trump administration will continue to back down on tariffs.—
Sarah Min,
CNBC,
3 June 2025
-
Kumar’s departure comes as Denver faces a budget crisis that prompted city leadership to back down from an effort to give raises to Johnston’s appointees.—
Elliott Wenzler,
Denver Post,
3 June 2025
Verb
-
The visit on Thursday is critical for Merz to try on behalf of the 27-member bloc to convince Trump to back off the 50 percent tariffs.—
Laura Kelly,
The Hill,
5 June 2025
-
South Florida’s rainy season started off to an unusually wet start, but the downpours are expected to back off for the rest of the week.—
Abigail Hasebroock,
Sun Sentinel,
4 June 2025
Verb
-
About 20 minutes later, the two cops out in front were joined by a third officer.—
Melody Chiu,
People.com,
7 Jan. 2025
-
The judges avoid giving critiques to the girls this week but do talk among one another, which is kind of weird but also means that nobody gets to cop out of Rate-a-Queen and just imitate the judges.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
3 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has estimated that salmonella causes about 420 deaths annually in the U.S. A photo of the affected product in the Williams Farms Repack LLC recall.—
Jasmine Laws,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 May 2025
-
Reports of wood inside Dinty Moore Beef Stew led to Hormel Foods recalling the product Wednesday.—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
29 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Back out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/back%20out. Accessed 11 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share