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definitions

retiring

[ri-tahyuhr-ing]
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adjective

that retires.
withdrawing from contact with others; reserved; shy.

RELATED WORDS

reserved, humble, quiet, withdrawn, shrinking, restrained, backward, bashful, coy, demure, diffident, meek, modest, recessive, reclusive, reticent, timid, timorous, unassuming, unsociable

Nearby words

  1. retirement,
  2. retirement community,
  3. retirement pension,
  4. retirement plan,
  5. retirement relief,
  6. retiringly,
  7. retiré,
  8. retold,
  9. retook,
  10. retool

Origin of retiring

First recorded in 1540–50; retire + -ing2
Related formsre·tir·ing·ly, adverbre·tir·ing·ness, nounnon·re·tir·ing, adjectiveun·re·tir·ing, adjective

retire

[ri-tahyuhr]

verb (used without object), re·tired, re·tir·ing.

to withdraw, or go away or apart, to a place of privacy, shelter, or seclusion: He retired to his study.
to go to bed: He retired at midnight.
to withdraw from office, business, or active life, usually because of age: to retire at the age of sixty.
to fall back or retreat in an orderly fashion and according to plan, as from battle, an untenable position, danger, etc.
to withdraw or remove oneself: After announcing the guests, the butler retired.

verb (used with object), re·tired, re·tir·ing.

to withdraw from circulation by taking up and paying, as bonds, bills, etc.; redeem.
to withdraw or lead back (troops, ships, etc.), as from battle or danger; retreat.
to remove from active service or the usual field of activity, as an army officer or business executive.
to withdraw (a machine, ship, etc.) permanently from its normal service, usually for scrapping; take out of use.
Sports. to put out (a batter, side, etc.).

noun Literary.

a place of withdrawal; retreat: a cool retire from summer's heat.
retirement or withdrawal, as from worldly matters or the company of others.

Origin of retire

1525–35; < Middle French retirer to withdraw, equivalent to re- re- + tirer to draw
Related formsre·tir·er, noun

Synonym study

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

Examples from the Web for retiring

British Dictionary definitions for retiring

retiring

adjective

shunning contact with others; shy; reserved
Derived Formsretiringly, adverb

retire

verb (mainly intr)

(also tr) to give up or to cause (a person) to give up his work, a post, etc, esp on reaching pensionable age (in Britain and Australia usually 65 for men, 60 for women)
to go away, as into seclusion, for recuperation, etc
to go to bed
to recede or disappearthe sun retired behind the clouds
to withdraw from a sporting contest, esp because of injury
(also tr) to pull back (troops, etc) from battle or an exposed position or (of troops, etc) to fall back
(tr)
  1. to remove (bills, bonds, shares, etc) from circulation by taking them up and paying for them
  2. to remove (money) from circulation
Derived Formsretirer, noun

Word Origin for retire

C16: from French retirer, from Old French re- + tirer to pull, draw
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 retiring
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper