as in to hesitate
to show uncertainty about the right course of action
she hung back in offering her opinion about her daughter's career choices because it wasn't her business
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Recent Examples of hang back
While everyone else is working to save Bree, Belle hangs back and deals with the dead bodies.
—
Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 23 June 2025
Margie’s Intention, the morning line’s second favorite trained by Brad Cox, played the conditions, hanging back until Paris Lily lost her legs in the deep slush.
—Sam Cohn, Baltimore Sun, 17 May 2025
This is a prime opportunity for parents to enjoy a morning ride while grandparents hang back with grandchildren to meet a baby goat, pet friendly pigs and, on select days, collect eggs from the henhouse.
—Margaux Lushing, Forbes.com, 9 May 2025
After doing the work to create the transformer architecture in 2017, Google hung back and gave OpenAI the space to become a cultural phenomenon.
—Ryan Whitwam, ArsTechnica, 8 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for hang back
Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 23 June 2025
Margie’s Intention, the morning line’s second favorite trained by Brad Cox, played the conditions, hanging back until Paris Lily lost her legs in the deep slush.
—Sam Cohn, Baltimore Sun, 17 May 2025
This is a prime opportunity for parents to enjoy a morning ride while grandparents hang back with grandchildren to meet a baby goat, pet friendly pigs and, on select days, collect eggs from the henhouse.
—Margaux Lushing, Forbes.com, 9 May 2025
After doing the work to create the transformer architecture in 2017, Google hung back and gave OpenAI the space to become a cultural phenomenon.
—Ryan Whitwam, ArsTechnica, 8 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for hang back
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hang back
Verb
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In Larsen’s view, striking at the right moment - whether in blockchain, AI, or precision medicine - requires not only patience but also the courage to act decisively when others hesitate.—
Francois Botha,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
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Some executives hesitated, unsure of what to expect.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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As the business cycle… cycles, eventually growth will falter.—
George Calhoun,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
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But their defense, which had been their strong suit in recent seasons, faltered greatly and was also a major factor in their poor showing.—
Robert Marvi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hang back.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hang%20back. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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