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Synonyms

pull back

British  

verb

  1. to return or be returned to a rearward position by pulling

    the army pulled back
"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

noun

  1. the act of pulling back

  2. a device for restraining the motion of a mechanism, etc, or for returning it to its original position

"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
pull back Idioms  

  1. Retreat, as in The troops gradually pulled back. [Mid-1500s]

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.

However, Haaretz cited a source as saying on Monday that the talks had been postponed after Israel pulled back from the plan.

From BBC

So Waldman is seeing his points perk go away, and says he may pull back on his ad spending with Meta and look at other channels as a result.

From MarketWatch

While stocks have pulled back and credit spreads have widened, the movement has been relatively contained.

From The Wall Street Journal

Rising gas prices also threaten to hit the U.S. auto industry, which has partially pulled back from electric-vehicle production.

From The Wall Street Journal

Economists worry that consumers will pull back their spending.

From MarketWatch

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.