as in backing out
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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Recent Examples of backing off
Meadows tried slowing up and backing off at the last second.
—
CBS News, 10 Apr. 2026
Meadows tried slowing up and backing off at the last second.
—Dave Campbell, Chicago Tribune, 9 Apr. 2026
Treasury yields and the dollar retreated, with traders backing off some of their more hawkish Federal Reserve bets, pricing in a few basis points worth of easing this year.
—Bloomberg Wire, Dallas Morning News, 23 Mar. 2026
Oil backing off from its session high helped equities recover, too.
—Jeff Marks, CNBC, 2 Mar. 2026
Tensions came to a head when Carrie confronted her for backing off.
—Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 30 Dec. 2025
Malik’s boss is not happy that Malik doesn’t have a grip on the Crane brothers, though Malik assures him that Amos frightened Sarah into backing off — and that Dinah is tucked away at a safe house.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 29 Oct. 2025
Benioff clarified his National Guard comments in subsequent days leading up to Dreamforce, without backing off his long-running concerns over public safety.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 27 Oct. 2025
And yet governments and corporations are now backing off on previous climate goals, and the planet's annual greenhouse gas emissions continue to climb.
—Alec Luhn, Scientific American, 11 Sep. 2025
CBS News, 10 Apr. 2026
Meadows tried slowing up and backing off at the last second.
—Dave Campbell, Chicago Tribune, 9 Apr. 2026
Treasury yields and the dollar retreated, with traders backing off some of their more hawkish Federal Reserve bets, pricing in a few basis points worth of easing this year.
—Bloomberg Wire, Dallas Morning News, 23 Mar. 2026
Oil backing off from its session high helped equities recover, too.
—Jeff Marks, CNBC, 2 Mar. 2026
Tensions came to a head when Carrie confronted her for backing off.
—Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 30 Dec. 2025
Malik’s boss is not happy that Malik doesn’t have a grip on the Crane brothers, though Malik assures him that Amos frightened Sarah into backing off — and that Dinah is tucked away at a safe house.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 29 Oct. 2025
Benioff clarified his National Guard comments in subsequent days leading up to Dreamforce, without backing off his long-running concerns over public safety.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 27 Oct. 2025
And yet governments and corporations are now backing off on previous climate goals, and the planet's annual greenhouse gas emissions continue to climb.
—Alec Luhn, Scientific American, 11 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backing off
Verb
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Investigators say Horner accidentally struck the child with his delivery truck while backing out of the driveway.—
Amelia Mugavero,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026
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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
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The Senators aren’t backing down in the face of playing Carolina, seeking to build off losing to Toronto in six games in the first round last year.—
John Wawrow,
The Orlando Sentinel,
16 Apr. 2026
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Trump has pushed back on the notion of backing down, framing his brinkmanship as a savvy negotiating tactic.—
Greg Iacurci,
CNBC,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Backing off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backing%20off. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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