recanted 1 of 2

adjective

as in retracted

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recanted

2 of 2

verb

past tense of recant
as in renounced
to solemnly or formally reject or go back on (as something formerly adhered to) the Inquisition forced Galileo to recant his support of the Copernican observation that the earth revolves around the sun

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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 recanted
Adjective
The two who confessed – and later recanted – were convicted of capital murder and remained in prison until DNA evidence proving their innocence led to their release in 2009, prosecutors said. — Jean Casarez, CNN Money, 5 Oct. 2025
Verb
In addition, investigators working for Duncan’s legal team interviewed a jailhouse informant who recanted his earlier trial testimony that Duncan had confessed to the crime. — Richard A. Webster, ProPublica, 29 June 2026 At least three people were arrested and police said at least four others have recanted. — Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 17 June 2026 But that witness also recanted when prosecutors showed him the video of what happened. — J.d. Miles, CBS News, 8 June 2026 Others have recanted and said police coerced them into implicating Washington and Simms. — John Annese, New York Daily News, 22 May 2026 However, the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office ultimately dropped charges against Santana after the 17-year-old accuser recanted his statements to prosecutors, television interviewers and on social media, according to court records. — Verónica Egui Brito, Miami Herald, 14 May 2026 The conviction turned largely on eyewitness testimony that has since been recanted and scientific evidence that has since been debunked. — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 8 May 2026 Bourgerie noted that Ball’s wife later recanted her allegations and that Ball had been named deputy of the year for the Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office in 2025. — Shelly Bradbury, Denver Post, 8 May 2026 Epstein told a guard Tartaglione had attacked him, but later recanted. — ABC News, 7 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for recanted
  1. retracted
  2. renounced
  3. withheld
  4. withdrew
  5. suppressed
  6. denied
  7. repressed
  8. contradicted
Adjective
  • On April 22, 2026, Springer Nature posted a retracted article notice almost a year after initial publication.
    — Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 4 May 2026
  • The reading assignments prepared for the judges include a Substack post by a notable climate contrarian accusing the authors of the retracted climate chapter in the federal court’s reference manual of including material by Burger and hiding his authorship.
    — Abrahm Lustgarten, ProPublica, 2 May 2026
Definition of retracted
Verb
  • What follows are dozens of examples of how those whose names are familiar (or aren’t) and legendary (or infamous) for their actions while representing the state have been embraced (or renounced) by the rest of the country and beyond.
    — Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 13 July 2026
  • Spiritually, His Holiness is an emanation, or tulku, of the bodhisattva Chenrezig, who renounced nirvana to help mankind.
    — Charlie Campbell, Time, 9 July 2026
Definition of renounced
Adjective
  • The withheld funding supports election monitoring, independent media and other pro-democracy programs abroad.
    — Robert Alexander, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Aug. 2025
Definition of withheld
Verb
  • The appearance came several months after Roy withdrew from the Berlin Film Festival over its refusal to comment on Gaza.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 16 July 2026
  • That overperformance by the Democratic candidate held true in every state polled other than Maine, where the poll was conducted before Graham Platner withdrew from the race following a rape accusation.
    — Caroline Soler, New York Times, 15 July 2026
Definition of withdrew
Adjective
  • General Manager Ken Holland hinted at potentially being done after trading center Phillip Danault for a draft pick in December and acquiring Panarin at a suppressed price in February, though he has been known to under-promise often and, sometimes, over-deliver.
    — Andrew Knoll, Daily News, 3 Mar. 2026
  • Supervising sound editor Alastair Sirkett told IndieWire that Peter Claffey’s big, former-rugby-player frame really helps that moment sing with suppressed panic.
    — Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 18 Feb. 2026
Definition of suppressed
Verb
  • Graf denied a defense request to force Robinson's partner to travel from Texas to testify in person.
    — N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 6 July 2026
  • Historically, the Catholic Church had denied religious funerals inside its houses of worship as well as traditional burials for those who died in this way.
    — Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 5 July 2026
Definition of denied
Adjective
  • These effects reflect what’s currently active in the mind, not necessarily hidden or repressed thoughts.
    — Karen Stollznow, The Conversation, 14 July 2026
  • Director Brian De Palma cemented our cultural awareness of Carrie with his 1976 classic, starring Sissy Spacek as the repressed Carrie White and Piper Laurie as her religious fanatic mother, Margaret.
    — Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 13 July 2026
Definition of repressed
Verb
  • His views are contradicted by scores of studies showing vaccines have saved millions of lives and prevented long-term health problems from common diseases, while side-effects remain relatively rare.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 16 July 2026
  • Importantly, Trump’s announcement on Monday also contradicted pledges by some of his top officials not to charge tolls in the strait.
    — Shelby Talcott, semafor.com, 14 July 2026
Definition of contradicted

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Cite this Entry

“Recanted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/recanted. Accessed 19 Jul. 2026.

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