back away
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Walk backward, as in He cautiously backed away from the fire.
Gradually retreat, withdraw, as in Since he couldn't convince his colleagues, he's backing away from his original idea. Both usages employ the verb back in the sense of “retreat,” dating from the late 1400s. Also see back down; back out.
QUIZ
QUIZ YOURSELF ON "WAS" VS. "WERE"!
Were you ready for a quiz on this topic? Well, here it is! See how well you can differentiate between the uses of "was" vs. "were" in this quiz.
Question 1 of 7
“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.
Words nearby back away
back-alley, back anchor, back and fill, back-and-forth, back and to, back away, back bacon, backband, backbar, Back Bay, backbeat
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.