retreat

[ ri-treet ]

/ rɪˈtrit /

|||

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR retreat ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the forced or strategic withdrawal of an army or an armed force before an enemy, or the withdrawing of a naval force from action.

the act of withdrawing, as into safety or privacy; retirement; seclusion.

a place of refuge, seclusion, or privacy: The library was his retreat.

an asylum, as for the insane.

a retirement or a period of retirement for religious exercises and meditation.

Military.

a flag-lowering ceremony held at sunset on a military post.
the bugle call or drumbeat played at this ceremony.

the recession of a surface, as a wall or panel, from another surface beside it.

verb (used without object)

to withdraw, retire, or draw back, especially for shelter or seclusion.

to make a retreat: The army retreated.

to slope backward; recede: a retreating chin.

to draw or lead back.

Nearby words

Idioms

beat a retreat, to withdraw or retreat, especially hurriedly or in disgrace.

Origin of retreat

1300–50; (noun) Middle English retret < Old French, variant of retrait, noun use of past participle of retraire to draw back < Latin retrahere (re- re- + trahere to draw; see retract¹); (v.) late Middle English retreten < Middle French retraitier < Latin retractāre to retract²

SYNONYMS FOR retreat

2. departure, withdrawal. 3. shelter. 8. leave, pull back.

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ANTONYMS FOR retreat

1, 8, 9. advance.

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Related formsre·treat·al, adjectivere·treat·er, nounre·treat·ive, adjective

Can be confusedre-treat retreat

Synonym study

8. See depart.

re-treat

[ ree-treet ]

/ riˈtrit /

verb (used with or without object)

to treat again.

Origin of re-treat

First recorded in 1880–85; re- + treat

Can be confusedre-treat retreat

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

Examples from the Web for retreat

She completed a yoga teacher-training program and, in the spring of 2008, went on a retreat in Peru to study with shamans.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze|Lizzie Crocker|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Finally, a squad of reinforcements arrived and they were able to retreat.
The Brothers Who Ambushed ISIS|Mohammed A. Salih|December 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The law professor, Benny Tai, urged the students to “retreat and take the spirit of the Umbrella Movement into the community.”
The Monuments Men of Occupy Hong Kong|Brendon Hong|December 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
With falling temperatures, retreat has become a much more attractive option than before.
The Monuments Men of Occupy Hong Kong|Brendon Hong|December 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST

America, Stephens writes, is not necessarily in “decline” but rather “retreat.”
‘America in Retreat’: Why Neo-Isolationism Exploded Under Obama and What We Can Do About It|James Kirchick|December 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Prince John resumed his retreat from the lists, and the dispersion of the multitude became general.
Ivanhoe|Walter Scott
They seem to follow the sun in its advance and retreat; and to fly on the zephyr wing after an eternal spring.
Birds, Illustrated by Color Photography, Vol. II, No 3, September 1897|Various
It can readily be traced in its retreat and easily taken from the sand.
The World and Its People: Book VII|Anna B. Badlam
Well,” rejoined the Doctor, rising and striding toward a window, “a good general may order a retreat.
Dr. Sevier|George W. Cable
Finally the Confederate lines began to waver and give way, and the bugle sounded the retreat.
Brother Against Brother|John Roy Musick

British Dictionary definitions for retreat

retreat

/ (rɪˈtriːt) /

verb (mainly intr)

military to withdraw or retire in the face of or from action with an enemy, either due to defeat or in order to adopt a more favourable position

to retire or withdraw, as to seclusion or shelter

(of a person's features) to slope back; recede

(tr) chess to move (a piece) back

noun

the act of retreating or withdrawing

military

a withdrawal or retirement in the face of the enemy
a bugle call signifying withdrawal or retirement, esp (formerly) to within a defended fortification

retirement or seclusion

a place, such as a sanatorium or monastery, to which one may retire for refuge, quiet, etc

a period of seclusion, esp for religious contemplation

an institution, esp a private one, for the care and treatment of people who are mentally ill, infirm, elderly, etc

Word Origin for retreat

C14: from Old French retret, from retraire to withdraw, from Latin retrahere to pull back; see retract

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 retreat

retreat

c.1300, "a step backward;" late 14c., "act of retiring or withdrawing; military signal for retiring from action or exercise," from Old French retret, noun use of past participle of retrere "draw back," from Latin retrahere "draw back, withdraw, call back," from re- "back" (see re-) + trahere "to draw" (see tract (n.1)). Meaning "place of seclusion" is from early 15c.; sense of "establishment for mentally ill persons" is from 1797. Meaning "period of retirement for religious self-examination" is from 1756.

retreat

early 15c., "to draw in, draw back, leave the extremities," from retreat (n.) and in part from Old French retret, past participle of retrere. Meaning "to fall back from battle" is mid-15c. Related: Retreated; retreating.

Idioms and Phrases with retreat

retreat

see beat a retreat.

retreat

noun

verb (used without object)

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RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Idioms

Origin of retreat

Synonym study

re-treat

verb (used with or without object)

Origin of re-treat

Examples from the Web for retreat

retreat

verb (mainly intr)

noun

Word Origin for retreat

retreat

retreat

retreat