recede

[ri-seed]

See more synonyms for recede on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object), re·ced·ed, re·ced·ing.

to go or move away; retreat; go to or toward a more distant point; withdraw.
to become more distant.
(of a color, form, etc., on a flat surface) to move away or be perceived as moving away from an observer, especially as giving the illusion of space.Compare advance(def 15).

to slope backward: a chin that recedes.
to draw back or withdraw from a conclusion, viewpoint, undertaking, promise, etc.

Origin of recede

1470–80; < Latin recēdere to go, fall back, equivalent to re- re- + cēdere to withdraw, go; see cede

Can be confusedrecede reseed

Synonyms for recede

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5. retire, retreat.

recede

[ree-seed]

verb (used with object), re·ced·ed, re·ced·ing.

to cede back; yield or grant to a former possessor.

Origin of recede

First recorded in 1765–75; re- + cede

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for recede

reduce, fade, ebb, wane, dwindle, lessen, taper, subside, decrease, sink, abate, diminish, shrink, retreat, retrogress, decline, retire, return, depart, drop

Examples from the Web for recede

Contemporary Examples of recede

He is six feet and 201 pounds and has brown hair that is beginning to recede at the temples.
Gordie Howe Hockey’s Greatest War Horse
W.C. Heinz
May 31, 2014
She was briefly outed by Red as a mole and then allowed to recede into the background again.
‘The Blacklist’ Is Dead Without the Psychotic Red
Jason Lynch
March 31, 2014
My guess is that in the final moments of the season the supernatural elements of the show will recede.
How ‘True Detective’ Will End
Andrew Romano
March 3, 2014
The Qataris need to recede from the stage, Kabul will never trust them.
Karzai’s Temper Tantrum
Bruce Riedel
June 20, 2013
It is petty, but his constant railing against human nature reminds one of King Canute ordering the tide to recede.
A New Obama
Paul Begala
January 22, 2013

Historical Examples of recede

In short, things have gone so far that I cannot recede; because—things have gone so far.'
Tales And Novels, Volume 3 (of 10)
Maria Edgeworth
The Cabinet will recede more and more from our principles, our party.
Alice, or The Mysteries, Complete
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Unlike any other wall with which he had had experience, this wall seemed to recede from him as he approached.
White Fang
Jack London
Nor are we disposed to recede from our assertion made in Sec.
Modern Painters Volume I (of V)
John Ruskin
Moreover, the task was half-accomplished, and it would be idle to recede now.
The Strollers
Frederic S. Isham

British Dictionary definitions for recede

recede

verb (intr)

to withdraw from a point or limit; go backthe tide receded
to become more distanthopes of rescue receded
to slope backwardsapes have receding foreheads
1. (of a man's hair) to cease to grow at the temples and above the forehead
2. (of a man) to start to go bald in this way
to decline in value or character
(usually foll by from) to draw back or retreat, as from a promise

Word Origin for recede

C15: from Latin recēdere to go back, from re- + cēdere to yield, cede

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

Word Origin and History for recede

early 15c., from Middle French receder, from Latin recedere "to go back, fall back; withdraw, depart, retire," from re- "back" (see re-) + cedere "to go" (see cede). Related: Receded; receding.