retreat

  • 21retreat — 1 verb (I) 1 MOVE BACK a) to walk back and away from someone or something because you are afraid or embarrassed: He saw her and retreated, too shy to speak to her. (+ to/from etc): Perry lit the fuse and retreated to a safe distance. b) if an… …

    Longman dictionary of contemporary English

  • 22retreat — 1. verb 1) the army retreated Syn: withdraw, retire, draw back, pull back/out, fall back, give way, give ground, beat a retreat, beat a hasty retreat Ant: advance 2) the tide was retreating …

    Thesaurus of popular words

  • 23retreat — I. noun Etymology: Middle English retret, from Anglo French retrait, from past participle of retraire to withdraw, from Latin retrahere, from re + trahere to draw Date: 14th century 1. a. (1) an act or process of withdrawing especially from what… …

    New Collegiate Dictionary

  • 24retreat — I (New American Roget s College Thesaurus) n. withdrawal, retirement; seclusion; shelter, asylum; refuge, resort. See abode. v. i. withdraw, retire, fall back. See regression, departure, escape. II (Roget s IV) n. 1. [The act of retreating] Syn.… …

    English dictionary for students

  • 25retreat — 01. The soldiers were forced to [retreat] under heavy fire from the enemy. 02. General Douglas MacArthur once declared, We re not [retreating]; we re just advancing in a different direction. 03. The union has since [retreated] from its original… …

    Grammatical examples in English

  • 26retreat — /rəˈtrit / (say ruh treet) noun 1. the forced or strategic retirement of an armed force before an enemy, or the withdrawing of a ship or fleet from action. 2. the act of withdrawing, as into safety or privacy; retirement; seclusion. 3. a place of …

  • 27retreat — retreatal, adj. retreater, n. retreative, adj. /ri treet /, n. 1. the forced or strategic withdrawal of an army or an armed force before an enemy, or the withdrawing of a naval force from action. 2. the act of withdrawing, as into safety or… …

    Universalium

  • 28Retreat —    This is a term used to designate a time of retirement as a means of deepening the Spiritual life of the Clergy, for whose benefit it is held. It involves a temporary submission to the monastic rule of silence, meditation, confession and… …

    American Church Dictionary and Cyclopedia

  • 29retreat — [14] Retreat and retract [15] are ultimately the same word. Both go back to Latin retrahere ‘draw back’, a compound verb formed from the prefix re ‘back’ and trahere ‘draw, pull’ (source of English tractor). This passed into Old French as… …

    The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins

  • 30retreat — 1. verb the army retreated Syn: withdraw, retire, draw back, pull back/out, fall back, give way, give ground Ant: advance 2. noun 1) the retreat of the army Syn: withdrawal …

    Synonyms and antonyms dictionary