as in withdrew
to move back or away (as from something difficult, dangerous, or disagreeable)
a change in the wind direction forced the firefighters to drop back
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Recent Examples of dropped back
When the Nissan dropped back, Mulligan signalled once more.
—
Patrick Radden Keefe, New Yorker, 13 Apr. 2026
Daily use has dropped back down since the holiday frenzy, according to online news reports.
—John Ruwitch, NPR, 30 Mar. 2026
Ridden Saturday for the first time by jockey Flavien Prat, Commandment dropped back to last in the field of six midway through the 1 1/8-mile stakes, content to allow the others to contest the pace.
—Clark Spencer, Miami Herald, 29 Mar. 2026
The enlistment age was dropped back to 35 in 2016.
—Isa Almeida, Oklahoman, 25 Mar. 2026
Waits’ last album, Bad as Me, dropped back in 2011 — the same year he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 19 Mar. 2026
With Detroit’s win over Calgary, the B’s dropped back to the second wild-card spot.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 17 Mar. 2026
The Golden State Warriors just dropped back-to-back games to the Utah Jazz and the Chicago Bulls.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 11 Mar. 2026
No quarterback in the NFL has dropped back more times in the past two seasons than Nix.
—Nick Kosmider, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2026
Patrick Radden Keefe, New Yorker, 13 Apr. 2026
Daily use has dropped back down since the holiday frenzy, according to online news reports.
—John Ruwitch, NPR, 30 Mar. 2026
Ridden Saturday for the first time by jockey Flavien Prat, Commandment dropped back to last in the field of six midway through the 1 1/8-mile stakes, content to allow the others to contest the pace.
—Clark Spencer, Miami Herald, 29 Mar. 2026
The enlistment age was dropped back to 35 in 2016.
—Isa Almeida, Oklahoman, 25 Mar. 2026
Waits’ last album, Bad as Me, dropped back in 2011 — the same year he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 19 Mar. 2026
With Detroit’s win over Calgary, the B’s dropped back to the second wild-card spot.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 17 Mar. 2026
The Golden State Warriors just dropped back-to-back games to the Utah Jazz and the Chicago Bulls.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 11 Mar. 2026
No quarterback in the NFL has dropped back more times in the past two seasons than Nix.
—Nick Kosmider, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dropped back
Verb
-
In 2000, the UNIFIL established a de-facto area along the southern Lebanese border with Israel, after Israeli forces withdrew following their second invasion.—
Alayna Treene,
CNN Money,
24 Apr. 2026
-
An earlier court petition was dismissed in 2015 after the ex-wife withdrew it.—
Alex Derosier,
Twin Cities,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
But precisely as its students triumphed, Achievement First retreated from its founding commitments.—
Steven F. Wilson,
The Atlantic,
24 Apr. 2026
-
The price of Brent crude oil, the international standard, retreated on the news, falling to around $104 a barrel.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Major bands including Dropkick Murphys pulled out, leading Collins to cancel all 2026 Punk in the Park dates after the donation was discovered.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Apr. 2026
-
Tasks like work extraction are part of a larger framework known as resource distillation, where useful properties are pulled out of imperfect systems.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
19 Apr. 2026
Verb
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La Habra still had the bases loaded with no outs in the first inning, but Driskill retired the next three batters, leaving the runners stranded.—
Lou Ponsi,
Oc Register,
24 Apr. 2026
-
At one point, Ohtani retired 11 consecutive batters.—
Justice delos Santos,
Mercury News,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The Georgia General Assembly tried to face the issue this year but backed away at the last minute from a bill that almost passed.—
AJ Willingham,
AJC.com,
21 Apr. 2026
-
Between 2002 and 2003, the IRS flirted with building a free online filing system and then backed away, in part owing to private tax preparers that didn’t want to lose their grip on the process.—
Catherina Gioino,
Fortune,
15 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dropped back.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dropped%20back. Accessed 26 Apr. 2026.
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