backdown
a withdrawal from a previously held position, especially in the face of superior power or upon further consideration.
Origin of backdown
1Words Nearby backdown
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use backdown in a sentence
Mr. Greeley's "On to Richmond" backdown was not more sad to me, not half so sad.
The Life and Work of Susan B. Anthony (Volume 1 of 2) | Ida Husted HarperHard words and a wrangle followed, but Smith did not change expression, and there was a backdown.
Whispering Smith | Frank H. SpearmanIt looks first-rate to a fellow that hasn't got any backdown in him.
Romance of California Life | John HabbertonThe "minute-men" declared Mr. Toombs' letter was a backdown.
Robert Toombs | Pleasant A. Stovall
British Dictionary definitions for back down
(intr, adverb) to withdraw an earlier claim
(tr) rowing to cause (a boat) to move backwards by pushing rather than pulling on the oars
abandonment of an earlier claim
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
Other Idioms and Phrases with backdown
Reverse one's upward course, descend. For example, When she saw the wasps' nest on the roof, she hastily backed down the ladder. This literal usage usually refers to something one has climbed, such as a ladder or mountain. [Mid-1800s]
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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