take back
Britishverb
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to retract or withdraw (something said, written, promised, etc)
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to regain possession of
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to return for exchange
to take back a substandard garment
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to accept (someone) back (into one's home, affections, etc)
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to remind one of the past; cause one to reminisce
that tune really takes me back
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(also intr) printing to move (copy) to the previous line
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Retract a statement, as in I said you weren't much of a cook but after that dinner I take it all back . This usage was first recorded in 1775.
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take one back . Return in thought to a past time, as in That music takes me back to the first dance I ever went to . [Late 1800s]
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.
Brewdog co-founder James Watt is facing complaints to the UK data watchdog after he reportedly contacted former shareholders as part of efforts to take back control of the craft brewer.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
That argues for a modest correction rather than a full-fledged hiking campaign: The Fed would take back insurance that is no longer needed, then stop and reassess.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
“In that environment, they need to take back the 2025 rate cuts.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 10, 2026
"If they take back Timbuktu and the other towns, I can go home."
From Barron's ● May 19, 2026
To make matters worse, we have to return almost all the new things and take back our old rags again.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
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.
