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Synonyms

back off

British  

verb

  1. (intr) to retreat

  2. (tr) to abandon (an intention, objective, etc)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
back off Idioms  

  1. See back down , def. 2.

  2. Relent, abandon one's stand. For example, The chairman wanted to sell one division but later backed off . [Mid-1900s]

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Murphy said Newsom has championed major policies and been reluctant to back off them later when revenue doesn’t pencil out.

From Los Angeles Times • May 3, 2026

He was coming, so could they all back off?

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026

Stubborn inflation could force the Fed to back off rates cut this year.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 18, 2026

Diego Gomez drilled in the opening goal for the visitors after Ferdi Kadioglu's stunning strike came back off the bar.

From Barron's • Feb. 21, 2026

We felt it would be best for Minnijean to back off, but none of us could talk her out of it.

From "Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High" by Melba Pattillo Beals

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.