as in to back down
to break a promise or agreement
she backed out on her offer to help with the wedding planning
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Recent Examples of back out
After backing out of an agreement to trade first-round picks in 2026 and 2027 for Crosby, DeCosta was decried as dishonorable, dirty and duplicitous, especially after Baltimore signed another accomplished edge rusher, Trey Hendrickson, to a free-agent deal the following day.
—
Michael Silver, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2026
Chemistry read the next week, got all the old notes back out and tried to get back into that.
—Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 24 Apr. 2026
Italy is underwhelmed at the prospect of being named to the World Cup if Iran backs out.
—Andrew Greif, NBC news, 23 Apr. 2026
The energy put into a quantum system by measurement could be instantly pulled back out by the Hamiltonian and stored in a battery to power other processes, García-Pintos says.
—Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 21 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for back out
Michael Silver, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2026
Chemistry read the next week, got all the old notes back out and tried to get back into that.
—Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 24 Apr. 2026
Italy is underwhelmed at the prospect of being named to the World Cup if Iran backs out.
—Andrew Greif, NBC news, 23 Apr. 2026
The energy put into a quantum system by measurement could be instantly pulled back out by the Hamiltonian and stored in a battery to power other processes, García-Pintos says.
—Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 21 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for back out
Recent Examples of Synonyms for back out
Verb
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The trail eventually tilts back down toward the city, where car honks and train horns replace the cries of birds and insects.—
John Metcalfe,
Mercury News,
4 May 2026
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That pulls cooler air up and pushes warm air (which rises to the ceiling) back down into the room without creating a draft.—
Ryan Brennan
May 4,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
4 May 2026
Verb
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To back off from that charge, district officials proposed raising average class sizes in kindergarten through fourth grade from 24-to-1 to 28-to-1, according to the district.—
Howard Blume,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Apr. 2026
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The next back off the board came near the end of the third round when the San Francisco 49ers took Indiana’s Kaelon Black 90th, marking the fewest running backs taken in the first three rounds of the common draft.—
Josh Dubow,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Climb the 900-odd steps (or cop out in a car) for a walk through its eight baroque bastions and some breathtaking views.—
Helen Brown,
TheWeek,
30 Apr. 2026
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To say these machines are too expense is a cop out.—
Boston Herald editorial staff,
Boston Herald,
7 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Hostile former customers recalled poor customer service and flight experiences, while the more charitable lamented that the affordable airline could no longer offer a trade-off of service for a better price.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
2 May 2026
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Smyre recalled that Scott would go into the well during tense House-Senate moments and lay into him when Smyre was House Rules chair.—
Greg Bluestein,
AJC.com,
2 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Back out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/back%20out. Accessed 6 May. 2026.
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