as in withdrawing
to solemnly or formally reject or go back on (as something formerly adhered to)
the newspaper was forced to retract the story, which turned out to be based on fabricated reporting
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of retracting
Pressure campaigns have even led to traditional media outlets retracting previously positive reviews, further harming book sales and author reputations.
—
Kevin Dickinson, Big Think, 2 Sep. 2025
APPs excel in positioning patients, opening surgical sites, retracting tissues, and closing incisions.
—Richard Menger Md Mpa, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Roberts still acknowledged this all becomes more of a conversation if the Dodgers can get closer to full strength, anyway, before retracting some of his pointed criticism of Hernández from Monday night and doubling down on his belief Hernández can improve his range.
—Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025
Kevin Dickinson, Big Think, 2 Sep. 2025
APPs excel in positioning patients, opening surgical sites, retracting tissues, and closing incisions.
—Richard Menger Md Mpa, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Roberts still acknowledged this all becomes more of a conversation if the Dodgers can get closer to full strength, anyway, before retracting some of his pointed criticism of Hernández from Monday night and doubling down on his belief Hernández can improve his range.
—Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for retracting
Verb
-
Duncan even contemplated mounting a third-party challenge to Trump as a No Labels candidate last year before withdrawing his name from consideration.—
Samantha-Jo Roth,
The Washington Examiner,
16 Sep. 2025
-
The Biden administration had weighed withdrawing antitrust immunity for the joint venture, which began in 2016.—
Leslie Josephs,
CNBC,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Even worse, Park and his conservative successors had been bolstered by the very imperial forces from which the South Koreans had hoped to escape, in exchange for renouncing their right to forgive and to hold Japan accountable.—
Eun A Jo,
Foreign Affairs,
23 Nov. 2022
Verb
-
But there’s no denying that this emerging dynamic gives billionaires and their space companies unprecedented power that could play out in exciting — and perhaps dangerous — ways.—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
-
China is also ramping up its ability to target satellites, aimed at weakening or denying adversaries access to space, reported SCMP.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Retracting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/retracting. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share