as in backing out
to break a promise or agreement
if you back down about dinner again, I'm not going to agree to another date
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 backing down
Tehran shows no signs of backing down.
—
Michael Loria, USA Today, 31 Mar. 2026
Iran, meanwhile, gave no signs of backing down.
—David Rising, Chicago Tribune, 27 Mar. 2026
But Iran showed no signs of backing down.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, Arkansas Online, 20 Mar. 2026
But Iran showed no signs of backing down.
—Jon Gambrell, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2026
It's been all A&M tonight, but Saint Mary's isn't backing down.
—Tony Catalina, Austin American Statesman, 19 Mar. 2026
But the White House is not backing down.
—Ed Silverman, STAT, 17 Mar. 2026
But Paxton and his allies are showing no signs of backing down.
—ABC News, 4 Mar. 2026
Prakash Singh | Bloomberg | Getty Images Anthropic isn’t backing down from its position about AI in defense.
—Alex Harring, CNBC, 27 Feb. 2026
Michael Loria, USA Today, 31 Mar. 2026
Iran, meanwhile, gave no signs of backing down.
—David Rising, Chicago Tribune, 27 Mar. 2026
But Iran showed no signs of backing down.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, Arkansas Online, 20 Mar. 2026
But Iran showed no signs of backing down.
—Jon Gambrell, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2026
It's been all A&M tonight, but Saint Mary's isn't backing down.
—Tony Catalina, Austin American Statesman, 19 Mar. 2026
But the White House is not backing down.
—Ed Silverman, STAT, 17 Mar. 2026
But Paxton and his allies are showing no signs of backing down.
—ABC News, 4 Mar. 2026
Prakash Singh | Bloomberg | Getty Images Anthropic isn’t backing down from its position about AI in defense.
—Alex Harring, CNBC, 27 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backing down
Verb
-
Investigators say Horner accidentally struck the child with his delivery truck while backing out of the driveway.—
Amelia Mugavero,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026
-
The Florida and Texas metros with the highest share of stale listings are all solid buyer’s markets, where buyers have the upper hand over sellers and can negotiate lower prices as well as backing out of unfavorable deals.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Meadows tried slowing up and backing off at the last second.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Meadows tried slowing up and backing off at the last second.—
Dave Campbell,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Backing down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backing%20down. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
