BACKTRACKED Synonyms: 45 Similar and Opposite Words

backtracked

verb

past tense of backtrack

as in reverted

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Dissimilar Words

as in backpedaled

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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 backtracked Seconds later, Flore backtracked, called the foul on the floor, then backtracked his backtrack and reverted to his initial call. — Cj Moore, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for backtracked

Verb

Aside from those outlier seasons, escrow money mostly reverted back to owner, and the COVID-19 pandemic forced the league to send the withholding percentages skyward.

— Kurt Badenhausen, Sportico.com, 13 July 2026
The effect hasn’t mean-reverted.

— Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 27 June 2026

Definition of reverted

Verb

Anthony Volpe had to defend his character after the team’s play-by-play man, Michael Kay, retracted unfounded claims about the shortdtop’s unwillingness to play second base.

— Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 13 July 2026
Although the journal issued an Expression of Concern shortly after publication, the study has not yet been retracted.

— Dannell D. Boatman, The Conversation, 8 July 2026

Definition of retracted

Verb

In 2023, she was served a restraining order from the district for sharing teachers’ personal information, which was later revoked, according to previous reporting from The Bee.

— Camryn Dadey, Sacbee.com, 18 July 2026
Florida’s education commissioner then revoked the school’s eligibility for state funds.

— Jennifer Smith Richards, ProPublica, 16 July 2026

Definition of revoked

Verb

This spring, the federal government rescinded the decades-old criteria the BLM had to apply to these routes, the framework this case was built on.

— Shannon Welch, Oc Register, 12 July 2026
The city gave conditional approval to the incentives on June 22, but that resolution states consent would be rescinded and voided if the city doesn’t receive funds in line with the original agreement.

— John Marks, Charlotte Observer, 10 July 2026

Definition of rescinded

Verb

The driver reportedly lost control of the bus, which veered off the road, struck a rock and overturned, according to the police statement, which added that the information was preliminary and the cause of the crash was under investigation.

— ABC News, ABC News, 17 July 2026
The state had rebuffed a bid for the sculpture by a Flechtheim heir in 2024, but Blume said that new national guidelines for a new arbitration panel had led to that decision being overturned.

— Brian Boucher, ARTnews.com, 16 July 2026

Definition of overturned

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backtrack

backtracked

backtracking

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“Backtracked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backtracked. Accessed 18 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of backtracked

verb

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