withdrawal

[ with-draw-uh l, -drawl, with- ]

/ wɪðˈdrɔ əl, -ˈdrɔl, wɪθ- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR withdrawal ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Also with·draw·ment. the act or condition of withdrawing.

Pharmacology. the act or process of ceasing to use an addictive drug.

coitus interruptus.

Nearby words

with the exception of, with the gloves off, with-, withal, withdraw, withdrawal, withdrawal symptom, withdrawal symptoms, withdrawal syndrome, withdrawing room, withdrawn

Origin of withdrawal

First recorded in 1740–50; withdraw + -al²

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

Examples from the Web for withdrawal

It announced a withdrawal from the French shore due to invincible enemy resistance.
Blood in the Sand: When James Jones Wrote a Grunt’s View of D-Day|James Jones|November 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Firsthand accounts from Sinjar paint a picture of withdrawal without a fight and without warning the local population.
How the U.S.-favored Kurds Abandoned the Yazidis when ISIS Attacked|Christine van den Toorn|August 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The withdrawal from Sector D leaves several other border crossings open.
Ukrainian Troops Retreat From Russian Border, Leaving 100 Kilometers Open to Invasion|Pierre Vaux|August 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“We are paying the price for inaction and we are paying the price for withdrawal,” said McCain.
McCain Calls Obama's 'Pinprick' Iraq Strikes 'Meaningless' and 'Almost Worse Than Nothing'|Josh Rogin|August 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Yet while sanctions like these can be painful, they can also make Putin more adamantly resistant to withdrawal from Ukraine.
Best Way to Punish Putin? No World Cup|Tunku Varadarajan|July 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
After the withdrawal of our army, General Price returned to Springfield and went into winter-quarters.
Camp-Fire and Cotton-Field|Thomas W. Knox
A misunderstanding between the trio resulted in the withdrawal of the two medical men before the structure was completed.
Florida: Past and present|Samuel Curtis Upham
This opinion began to be formed between 1825 and 1830, after the retirement or withdrawal of eye witnesses.
The Origins of Contemporary France, Volume 4 (of 6)|Hippolyte A. Taine
From any dilemma that ensued, the reserve of speed gave him a power of withdrawal, in relying upon which he was right.
The Major Operations of the Navies in the War of American Independence|A. T. Mahan
His withdrawal, in his verse, from the life of his times was the act of a natural recluse.
Penguin Persons & Peppermints|Walter Prichard Eaton

British Dictionary definitions for withdrawal

withdrawal

/ (wɪðˈdrɔːəl) /

noun

an act or process of withdrawing; retreat, removal, or detachment

the period a drug addict goes through following abrupt termination in the use of narcotics, usually characterized by physical and mental symptoms (withdrawal symptoms)

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

Medicine definitions for withdrawal

withdrawal

[ wĭð-drô′əl, wĭth- ]

n.

Detachment, as from social or emotional involvement.

Discontinuation of the use of an addictive substance.

The physiological and mental readjustment that accompanies such discontinuation.

A pattern of behavior, observed in schizophrenia and depression, that is characterized by a pathological retreat from interpersonal contact and social involvement and that leads to self-preoccupation.

Coitus interruptus.

Science definitions for withdrawal

withdrawal

[ wĭð-drô′əl, wĭth- ]

Discontinuation of the use of an addictive substance. The symptoms of withdrawal include headache, diarrhea, and tremors and can range from mild to life threatening, depending on the extent of the body's reliance on the addictive substance.