as in withdrawing
to move back or away (as from something difficult, dangerous, or disagreeable)
backed away from the snake very slowly and carefully
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 away
After backing away from the giant mammal, the influencer then moves closer again, jumping back once more when the elephant attempts to grab him with its trunk.
—
Nicholas Rice, PEOPLE, 18 Oct. 2025
And yet the Republican administration and its congressional allies are showing no signs of caving to Democratic demands or backing away from threats to use the opportunity to pursue deeper cuts to the federal workforce.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 12 Oct. 2025
Video showed the man backing away from Sanchez, who stands 6-feet-2-inches, before the former quarterback followed then ran after the man, grabbing and throwing him toward the wall of the Westin, another downtown hotel, police wrote in the affidavit.
—IndyStar, 6 Oct. 2025
The clip shows the massive American bully hesitantly backing away from a tiny, energetic puppy.
—Maria Morava, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Sep. 2025
Prescott and Carter exchanged words after the opening kickoff, and Carter spit on Prescott’s jersey before backing away.
—Dan Gelston, Chicago Tribune, 5 Sep. 2025
After backing away from a controversial logo rebrand loudly opposed by many right-wing influencers, Cracker Barrel also quietly made changes to its website this week.
—Samantha Delouya, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2025
That’s how desperate Maye was, rolling right and then backing away from pressure on fourth down with the clock ticking under 15 seconds on his last snap of the day.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 4 Aug. 2025
Nicholas Rice, PEOPLE, 18 Oct. 2025
And yet the Republican administration and its congressional allies are showing no signs of caving to Democratic demands or backing away from threats to use the opportunity to pursue deeper cuts to the federal workforce.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 12 Oct. 2025
Video showed the man backing away from Sanchez, who stands 6-feet-2-inches, before the former quarterback followed then ran after the man, grabbing and throwing him toward the wall of the Westin, another downtown hotel, police wrote in the affidavit.
—IndyStar, 6 Oct. 2025
The clip shows the massive American bully hesitantly backing away from a tiny, energetic puppy.
—Maria Morava, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Sep. 2025
Prescott and Carter exchanged words after the opening kickoff, and Carter spit on Prescott’s jersey before backing away.
—Dan Gelston, Chicago Tribune, 5 Sep. 2025
After backing away from a controversial logo rebrand loudly opposed by many right-wing influencers, Cracker Barrel also quietly made changes to its website this week.
—Samantha Delouya, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2025
That’s how desperate Maye was, rolling right and then backing away from pressure on fourth down with the clock ticking under 15 seconds on his last snap of the day.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 4 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backing away
Verb
-
After suffering a major setback in March by losing the capital of Khartoum, the RSF regained the initiative in the following months, culminating in the SAF withdrawing from its last stronghold in western Sudan, El Fasher, leaving it at the RSF’s mercy.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
30 Oct. 2025
-
The 3rd Battalion is undergoing modernization that includes refining tactics such as seizing key terrain for the rapid insertion and deployment of HIMARS launchers for strike missions, then withdrawing to a secure location.—
Ryan Chan,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Precious metals and related mining stocks are retreating after a parabolic upmove over the past two months.—
Katie Stockton,
CNBC,
27 Oct. 2025
-
In the example below from their 2-1 win over Girona, Barcelona man-mark the opposition midfielders but Fermin Lopez’s passive positioning allows a pass into retreating centre-forward Portu.—
Anantaajith Raghuraman,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
In 2023, federal lawmakers introduced the Sunshine Protection Act, a proposal to make daylight saving time permanent, meaning no more springing forward or falling back.—
Evan Moore,
Charlotte Observer,
29 Oct. 2025
-
For example, Comet Halley barely crosses the orbit of Neptune before falling back into the inner solar system.—
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The Charlotte 49ers were on the brink of pulling out a season-changing upset through three quarters against North Texas (7-1, 3-1 American), but a dreadful fourth quarter brought Tim Albin’s upset hopes crashing down, losing 54-20 in a Friday night blowout.—
Hunter Bailey,
Charlotte Observer,
25 Oct. 2025
-
Thursday's Week 7 contest turned into a shootout with the Bengals pulling out a 33-31 upset in the final seconds.—
Anne Erickson,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Some backups go through every tiny detail of the pre and at-snap routine, even dropping back with a ball in their hand but stopping short of throwing it.—
Jourdan Rodrigue,
New York Times,
11 Sep. 2025
-
As moisture increases later this week, a cooling trend will commence with temperatures dropping back into the normal range by Friday.—
Joe Edwards,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Big bills, more emissions Opponents to the project expressed frustration that financial incentives for clean energy are being used to fund fossil fuel projects without retiring coal plants as the original bill intended.—
Sophie Hartley,
IndyStar,
30 Oct. 2025
-
Brown, who played football for the University of Nebraska and was a fifth-round draft pick for the New York Giants in 2000 before retiring in 2009, married Smith in July 2010.—
Skyler Caruso,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Backing away.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backing%20away. Accessed 1 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share