back out

British  

verb

1. to withdraw (from an agreement, etc)

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back out Idioms  

1. Move or retreat backwards without turning; same as back away , def. 1.

2. Also, back out of something . Withdraw from a situation, or break an agreement or engagement. For example, After the announcement appeared in the papers, Mary found it doubly difficult to back out of her engagement to Todd . [Early 1800s] Also see go back on .

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Example Sentences

“A lot of these guys,” he said, are “just going back out and doing the same thing.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Though warn relatives in advance so they can back out of your dry dinner, or bar hop, or plan an after-party on their own later.

From Salon

Foot traffic was light but steady on a recent weekday morning, with a mix of students and office workers zipping in and back out a few minutes later.

From The Wall Street Journal

Now, just as traders were settled to the idea that rate hikes would soon end, above-forecast German data on Thursday let the inflation genie back out of the bottle, sending bond yields sharply higher.

From Reuters

“She’s been just nailing her vault in the gym, so today we were excited to be able to get her back out there.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• back down
• cancel
• give up
• renege
• surrender