TAKING BACK Synonyms: 65 Similar and Opposite Words

taking back

verb

present participle of take back

as in withdrawing

to solemnly or formally reject or go back on (as something formerly adhered to) I take back what I said about her: she's not the fool I thought she was

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Recent Examples of taking back Democrats have said Kean's 7th congressional district is a top target to flip in their pursuit of taking back the majority. — Claudia Grisales, NPR, 30 June 2026 Trading him might be another option, though the market is likely to be thin and require taking back salary. — John Hollinger, New York Times, 23 June 2026 Getting a grip on immigration was a key promise of the Brexiters — their message of taking back control resonated. — ABC News, 21 June 2026 Adding scientists to the corps in the late 1960s, and deliberately recruiting women and Black astronauts in the 1970s, were widely hailed as steps the agency was taking back then towards diversity. — Elizabeth Howell, Space.com, 10 June 2026 Democrats can win again by taking back the middle. — NBC news, 31 May 2026 An opposition party taking back control of the government would likely see the abandonment of a warming of relations with Israel and the West more broadly. — Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 25 Apr. 2026 San Francisco has won five of its last seven games overall, taking back-to-back series for the first time under rookie manager Tony Vitello. — Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 23 Apr. 2026 The clock is ticking on November’s midterm elections, and Democrats’ chances of taking back the Senate are improving. — The Conversation, 22 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for taking back

Verb

Serena Williams is withdrawing from Wimbledon doubles competition after injuring her knee at the tournament earlier this week.

— Matt Lavietes, NBC news, 4 July 2026
In an interview with The Sacramento Bee Wednesday, the labor leader behind Proposition 40 accused Newsom of failing to propose any alternative ahead of the June 25 deadline for withdrawing ballot measures.

— Ben Paviour July 2, Sacbee.com, 2 July 2026

Definition of withdrawing

Verb

The remote control has mixed reviews, with this seemingly retracting from its otherwise glowing reviews.

— Tantse Walter, Space.com, 26 June 2026
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said in a recall notice that the seat belts in certain Expedition and Lincoln vehicles may inadvertently lock, preventing the belt from retracting or extending.

— Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 3 June 2026

Definition of retracting

Verb

Mark Ford Rosemary Tonks emulated French Symbolist poets before converting to Christianity and renouncing all her own works.

— The New York Review of Books, The New York Review of Books, 4 July 2026
Corbett, of Palatine, announced his independent candidacy days after renouncing the current state of the Republican Party and dropping his consulting business work with GOP contenders.

— Rick Pearson, Chicago Tribune, 3 June 2026

Definition of renouncing

Verb

In one significant policy shift, Lewis George campaigned on repealing former Metropolitan Police Department chief Pamela Smith’s executive order directing her officers to cooperate with federal immigration authorities for individuals not in police custody.

— Naomi Lim, The Washington Examiner, 27 June 2026
Council members narrowly passed the ordinance repealing the ban by a 7-5 vote, with some voting against the measure as a form of protest.

— Dylan Lysen, Kansas City Star, 11 June 2026

Definition of repealing

Verb

This has been compounded by massive cuts in international aid and a Taliban government that has sidelined half of Afghanistan’s population, denying women and girls education beyond primary school and banning them from the vast majority of jobs.

— ABC News, ABC News, 8 July 2026
Similar restrictions have been challenged elsewhere, including in Georgia, where a federal judge ruled that denying hormone therapy to incarcerated people violated the Eighth Amendment.

— Ben Wheeler, Kansas City Star, 8 July 2026

Definition of denying

Verb

Over the same period, entry-level head count at the high-intensity firms rose 12%, contradicting predictions and fears that young or inexperienced workers would be most at risk of losing their jobs to AI.

— Rachel Barber, USA Today, 1 July 2026
This morning, the sun in Cancer will form a contradicting alignment with Pluto retrograde in Aquarius, creating a subtle but consistent undercurrent that something needs to change.

— Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 26 June 2026