as in to back out
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chicken (out)
Verb
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The president backed out of a meeting tentatively planned for Thursday after a top Republican panned the talks.—
Eleanor Mueller,
semafor.com,
24 Sep. 2025 -
After backing out of Monday's Dawson's Creek cast reunion in New York City due to illness, James Van Der Beek still made a surprise appearance at the event in a sweet video message for attendees and his fellow cast members.—
Joey Nolfi,
Entertainment Weekly,
23 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Maduro appears to be betting that Washington will back down.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
20 Sep. 2025
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At 89 years old, Woody Allen isn't backing down.—
Stephanie Giang-Paunon,
FOXNews.com,
20 Sep. 2025
Verb
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On Thursday, there were 652 officers on the force, with nearly 100 cops out on some kind of administrative or medical leave.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
8 Aug. 2025
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But with that brief wave of hope came new footage on Twitter every night of the NYPD acting like bad cops out of a Harvey Keitel flick: cops harassing peaceful crowds, cops kettling activists, cops literally driving a car into a crowd of protestors.—
Maris Kreizman,
Rolling Stone,
24 June 2025
Verb
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Some plants wimp out when temperatures soar—but not these heat-tolerant perennials.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
6 June 2025
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These thick, long-lasting steamers will never wimp out mid-shower, and the cute packaging sure doesn't hurt either.—
Annie Blackman,
Allure,
16 Mar. 2025
Verb
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When Parsons then tried to get his agent involved before putting ink to paper, Jones backed off the deal.—
Jon Machota,
New York Times,
24 Sep. 2025
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Small and mid-sized countries that were energetically pursuing Security Council reform have backed off and are waiting for a clear signal of what—if anything—Trump will say about it.—
Richard Gowan,
Time,
22 Sep. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Chicken (out).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chicken%20%28out%29. Accessed 28 Sep. 2025.
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