retract
Meaning
-
- To pull (something) back or back inside.
- To pull (something) back or back inside.
- To avert (one's eyes or a gaze).
- To pronounce (a sound, especially a vowel) farther to the back of the vocal tract.
- (obsolete) To hold back (something); to restrain.
- To draw back; to draw up; to withdraw.
Synonyms
move back
renege on
shrink from
place back
fold back
ebb away
eat one’s words
Frequency
Hyphenated as
re‧tract
Pronounced as (IPA)
/ɹɪˈtɹækt/
Etymology
In summary
From Late Middle English retracten, retract (“to absorb, draw in”), from Latin retractus (“withdrawn”), the perfect passive participle of Latin retrahō (“to draw or pull back, withdraw; to bring back; to compel to turn back; to recall; to get back, recover; to hold back, restrain, withhold; to remove, take away; to bring to light again; (Late Latin) to delay”), from re- (prefix meaning ‘again’) + trahō (“to drag, pull; to extract, withdraw”) (apparently ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tregʰ- (“to drag, pull (?)”), a variant of *dʰregʰ- (“to drag, pull; to run”)). Doublet of retreat.
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Notes