Retract Back Verb Draw Pull Re·Tract Latin Retrahere

re·tract
\\ri-ˈtrakt\\ verbtransitive verb
1. to draw back or in
    cats retract their claws
2.
  a.

take back

,

withdraw

      retract a confession
  b.
intransitive verb
1. to draw or pull back
2. to recant or disavow something
Synonyms: see ,
• re·tract·able \\-ˈtrak-tə-bəl\\ adjective

retract
  early 15c., "to draw (something) back;" see retraction. Sense of "to revoke, withdraw" is attested from 1540s.

retract
re·tract / ri5trAkt / verb1. (formal) to say that sth you have said earlier is not true or correct or that you did not mean it
   撤销,收回(说过的话):
  ▪ [VN]
   He made a false confession which he later retracted.
   他作了假供词,后来又翻供。
   They tried to persuade me to retract my words.
   他们试图说服我收回我的话。
2. [VN] (formal) to refuse to keep an agreement, a promise, etc.
   撤回,收回(协议、承诺等):
   to retract an offer
   撤销建议
3. (technical 术语) to move back into the main part of sth; to pull sth back into the main part of sth
   缩回；拉回:
  ▪ [V]
   The animal retracted into its shell.
   这只动物缩回到自己的壳里。
  ▪ [VN]
   The undercarriage was fully retracted.
   起落架被完全收起。

retract verb

re·tract
\rə̇.ˈtrakt, rē.ˈ-\ verb
(-ed/-ing/-s)
Etymology: Middle English retracten, from Latin retractus, past participle of retrahere to draw back, withdraw — more at
transitive verb
1.
 a. : to draw or pull back or in
  < a cat can retract it claws >
  < flipped out its wings and retracted them again — E.A.Armstrong >
  < throwing out and retracting their left fists — G.B.Shaw >
 b.
  (1) : to move (the tongue) further back
  (2) : 3b
2. obsolete
 a. : to draw or bring (a person) back
 b. : to hold back : ,
 c. : to take away :
3. [Middle French retracter, from Latin retractare to pull back, withdraw, retract, freq. of retrahere to draw back] : to take back (as an accusation or promise) : , ,
 < retract the wish as brutal — Thomas Hardy >
 < retract everything we had previously said — L.L.Snyder >
 < a confession she later retracted — Robert Parris >
 < refused to retract his previous naturalism — Americana Annual >
intransitive verb
1. : to draw back : undergo retraction
 < beds automatically retract into the walls — Current Biography >
 < watched the boat retract from the beach — K.M.Dodson >
 < she did not retract in horror; but laughed — Elizabeth Taylor >
2. : to withdraw, recant, or disavow something (as an accusation, statement, opinion)
 < was tarred, feathered, and carried several miles in a cart, but refused to retract — E.K.Alden >

Synonyms: see ,