copping out

verb

present participle of cop out
as in backing out
to break a promise or agreement don't cop out on your promise to pay for the damage

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for copping out
  1. backing out
  2. backing off
  3. backing down
Verb
  • O’Rourke says the wave cascaded so far down the ballot in Texas that a candidate who tried backing out of her campaign before Election Day ended up winning.
    — Joe Hagan, Vanity Fair, 12 Nov. 2026
  • Germany, the host of the 2027 men's world championships, also suggested backing out if Russia was allowed to play.
    — Ryan Morik OutKick, FOXNews.com, 7 Nov. 2026
Definition of backing out
Verb
  • Nikishin not backing off trade request Defenseman Alexander Nikishin remains unsigned by the Carolina Hurricanes as camps get set to open.
    — Pierre LeBrun, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026
  • The stock saw a record high close in June before backing off.
    — Alexa LoMonaco, CNBC, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of backing off
Verb
  • Walzer responded thoughtfully to each of the critiques, but without backing down.
    — Jordi Graupera, New Yorker, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Former president Jair Bolsonaro — Flávio Bolsonaro’s father — signed a 2020 decree that opened a path toward privatizing parts of it before immediately backing down amid a wave of criticism.
    — Terrence McCoy, Washington Post, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of backing down
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.

Browse Nearby Words

copping
copping out
copping (to)
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Copping out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/copping%20out. Accessed 14 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

The Words of the Week - Nov. 13

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
speech-bubble-untangle
Simplify The Convoluted Expression Quiz A quiz that’s as “uncomplicated as a round de...
See All