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Synonyms for backed out


Grammar : Verb
Spell : bak
Phonetic Transcription : bæk

Top 10 synonyms for backed out Other synonyms for the word backed out

Définition of backed out

Origin :
  • Old English bæc "back," from Proto-Germanic *bakam (cf. Old Saxon and Middle Dutch bak, Old Frisian bek), with no known connections outside Germanic.
  • The cognates mostly have been ousted in this sense in other modern Germanic languages by words akin to Modern English ridge (cf. Danish ryg, German Rücken). Many Indo-European languages show signs of once having distinguished the horizontal back of an animal (or a mountain range) from the upright back of a human. In other cases, a modern word for "back" may come from a word related to "spine" (Italian schiena, Russian spina) or "shoulder, shoulder blade" (Spanish espalda, Polish plecy).
  • To turn (one's) back on (someone or something) "ignore" is from early 14c. Behind (someone's) back "clandestinely" is from late 14c.
  • To know (something) like the back of one's hand, implying familiarity, is first attested 1893. The first attested use of the phrase is from a dismissive speech made to a character in Robert Louis Stevenson's "Catriona":
  • If I durst speak to herself, you may be certain I would never dream of trusting it to you; because I know you like the back of my hand, and all your blustering talk is that much wind to me.
  • The story, a sequel to "Kidnapped," has a Scottish setting and context, and the back of my hand to you was noted in the late 19th century as a Scottish expression meaning "I will have nothing to do with you" [e.g. "Jamieson's Dictionary of the Scottish Language"]. In English generally, the back of (one's) hand has been used to imply contempt and rejection since at least 1300. Perhaps the connection of a menacing dismissal is what made Stevenson choose that particular anatomical reference.
  • verb withdraw
Example sentences :
  • She turned to the window again, and Trenton backed out of the room as best he could.
  • Extract from : « One Day's Courtship » by Robert Barr
  • Then he raised me to my feet, and at a touch from the Chamberlain, I backed out of the room.
  • Extract from : « The Woman Thou Gavest Me » by Hall Caine
  • He blocked out the light, and in a moment had backed out of sight.
  • Extract from : « Romance » by Joseph Conrad and F.M. Hueffer
  • Schomberg would have backed out quietly if Ricardo had not turned his head.
  • Extract from : « Victory » by Joseph Conrad
  • With a spring it backed out again and stood with the others.
  • Extract from : « The Trail of '98 » by Robert W. Service
  • He knew, as he backed out, that he was cutting a poor figure.
  • Extract from : « In Kings' Byways » by Stanley J. Weyman
  • He'd hoped to have a violinist, too, but the party had backed out.
  • Extract from : « Torchy As A Pa » by Sewell Ford
  • He backed out of the big ship and consulted the charts of the lifeboat.
  • Extract from : « The Pirates of Ersatz » by Murray Leinster
  • At the time appointed all our passengers were on board, and we backed out from the levee.
  • Extract from : « Up the River » by Oliver Optic
  • At eight o'clock, promptly, we backed out and crossed the river.
  • Extract from : « Life On The Mississippi, Complete » by Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019