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
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of back out
That impetus brought Lance Hammer back out of the woodwork, a gauntlet thrown to himself to think through problematic contradictions involving the quite different — and often sparring — human verticals of capability, autonomy, and decline.
—
Ritesh Mehta, IndieWire, 18 Feb. 2026
As the fire spread and grew stronger, crews were forced to back out of the home.
—David Ferrara, Cincinnati Enquirer, 18 Feb. 2026
Orion then used the aerodynamic lift of the capsule to skip back out of the atmosphere and then reenter for final descent under parachutes to splashdown.
—Leonard David, Space.com, 17 Feb. 2026
Canadian billionaire Jimmy Pattison’s development company backed out of a sale of a 550,000-square-foot Virginia warehouse, Bloomberg reported.
—Jacqueline Munis, Fortune, 17 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for back out
Ritesh Mehta, IndieWire, 18 Feb. 2026
As the fire spread and grew stronger, crews were forced to back out of the home.
—David Ferrara, Cincinnati Enquirer, 18 Feb. 2026
Orion then used the aerodynamic lift of the capsule to skip back out of the atmosphere and then reenter for final descent under parachutes to splashdown.
—Leonard David, Space.com, 17 Feb. 2026
Canadian billionaire Jimmy Pattison’s development company backed out of a sale of a 550,000-square-foot Virginia warehouse, Bloomberg reported.
—Jacqueline Munis, Fortune, 17 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for back out
Recent Examples of Synonyms for back out
Verb
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This week, for the first time at the Olympics, skiers will scamper uphill wearing carpet-like skins on their skis or just their stiff boots, then barrel back down an ungroomed course.—
Evan Bush,
NBC news,
15 Feb. 2026
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While Lee and Hauswald prepare to roll out their vision, Houston, the City Council member, has not backed down from his push to expedite clearings of tents and RVs.—
Grant Stringer,
Mercury News,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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But multiple Democratic senators said that's not enough to persuade them to back off their demands.—
Riley Beggin,
Arkansas Online,
14 Feb. 2026
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But a large number of job gains might make Federal Reserve policymakers back off any further interest-rate cuts this year.—
John Towfighi,
CNN Money,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
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On Thursday, there were 652 officers on the force, with nearly 100 cops out on some kind of administrative or medical leave.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
8 Aug. 2025
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But with that brief wave of hope came new footage on Twitter every night of the NYPD acting like bad cops out of a Harvey Keitel flick: cops harassing peaceful crowds, cops kettling activists, cops literally driving a car into a crowd of protestors.—
Maris Kreizman,
Rolling Stone,
24 June 2025
Verb
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For Dallas’ Black community in the late 1950s through the 1960s, the Forest Theater was the place to see and be seen, recalls Shirley Rhodes, an 80-year-old South Dallas native who spent Saturdays there during her childhood while engrossed in the cinematic offerings.—
Uwa Ede-Osifo,
Dallas Morning News,
14 Feb. 2026
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Travelers with airline reservations may be nervously recalling a 43-day government shutdown that led to historic flight cancellations and long delays last year.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
14 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Back out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/back%20out. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.
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