as in to back down
to break a promise or agreement
you'd better not back off on your promise to do all the planning for the big dance
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of back off
While Air One can allow officers on the ground to back off without losing sight of a suspect, Joel kept pursuing.
—
Kelsy Mittauer, CBS News, 6 Mar. 2026
McCray has made a few swing changes, raised his hands a bit and backed off the plate an inch.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
Oil backing off from its session high helped equities recover, too.
—Jeff Marks, CNBC, 2 Mar. 2026
Specifically, a series of hydrogen leaks and then an unexpected problem getting helium to flow to the upper portion of the launch vehicle led to a series of delays and ultimately a decision to roll the rocket back off its launchpad.
—Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 27 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for back off
Kelsy Mittauer, CBS News, 6 Mar. 2026
McCray has made a few swing changes, raised his hands a bit and backed off the plate an inch.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
Oil backing off from its session high helped equities recover, too.
—Jeff Marks, CNBC, 2 Mar. 2026
Specifically, a series of hydrogen leaks and then an unexpected problem getting helium to flow to the upper portion of the launch vehicle led to a series of delays and ultimately a decision to roll the rocket back off its launchpad.
—Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 27 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for back off
Recent Examples of Synonyms for back off
Verb
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The midterms may hinge on affordability Democrats are making affordability the central plank of their pitch to voters in November, arguing that Trump has failed in his campaign promise to bring prices back down despite Republican control of Congress.—
Jonathan J. Cooper,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
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Potentially most importantly, Bane was coming from the Memphis Grizzlies, who made a name for themselves by not backing down to anyone who stood in front of them.—
Jon Krawczynski,
New York Times,
8 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The Broncos’ offensive woes allowed San Jose State to stretch its lead back out to double digits, 67-56, across the next five minutes.—
Idaho Statesman,
Idaho Statesman,
12 Mar. 2026
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But after the firestorm of allegations included in the Times report, both of the event's major corporate sponsors -- American Express and Blackbird -- backed out, the Times reported Tuesday.—
Kelly McCarthy,
ABC News,
12 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
Cite this Entry
“Back off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/back%20off. Accessed 14 Mar. 2026.
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