walk back

verb

walked back; walking back; walks back

transitive verb

US
: to retreat from or distance oneself from (a previously stated opinion or position)
… try not to say anything in the primary campaign that you might need to walk back in the general election.The Progressive Populist
… has tried to walk back his suggestion about Japan, in particular, claiming in recent days that he "never said" that the Asian nation should acquire nuclear weapons.Julian Hattem

Examples of walk back in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
But by late May and early June, Patel and Bongino for the first time indicated there wasn’t much to the information and walked back those promises. Cnn.com Wire Service, Mercury News, 25 July 2025 The boy and his girlfriend got out of the car and walked back to mine. Literary Hub, 24 July 2025 The former lecturer of law attempted to walk back the comments after public outcry but did not rescind the directive. Larry Madowo, CNN Money, 22 July 2025 Markets reacted swiftly: the dollar weakened, Treasury yields rose, and stocks fell to a two-week low, prompting Trump to quickly walk back his comments. Jesus Mesa, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for walk back

Word History

First Known Use

2000, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of walk back was in 2000

Cite this Entry

“Walk back.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/walk%20back. Accessed 4 Aug. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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