Skip to content

retreat

/ɹɪˈtɹiːt/noun, verb2 syllables

Retreat means: pull back or move away or backward.

Synonyms for retreat23

noun, as in an area where you can be alone

hideaway

noun, as in withdrawal for prayer and study and meditation

retirement

verb, as in pull back or move away or backward

withdraw, pull away, draw back, recede, pull back, retire, move back, back out, back away, crawfish, crawfish out, pull in one's horns

verb, as in make a retreat from an earlier commitment or activity

pull back, back out, back away, crawfish, crawfish out, pull in one's horns, withdraw, pull away, draw back, recede, retire, move back

verb, as in move back

retrograde

also used for retreat

back down, balk, beat a retreat, bug out, decline, fall back, pull out, regrade

Includes material from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Opposites of retreat

advance

What does retreat mean?11

verb

1

pull back or move away or backward“The enemy withdrew”

2

make a retreat from an earlier commitment or activity“We'll have to crawfish out from meeting with him”

3

move back“The glacier retrogrades”

4

move away, as for privacy“The Pope retreats to Castelgondolfo every summer”

noun

1

an area where you can be alone

2

withdrawal for prayer and study and meditation“the religious retreat is a form of vacation activity”

3

(military) withdrawal of troops to a more favorable position to escape the enemy's superior forces or after a defeat“the disorderly retreat of French troops”

4

a place of privacy; a place affording peace and quiet

5

(military) a signal to begin a withdrawal from a dangerous position

6

(military) a bugle call signaling the lowering of the flag at sunset

7

the act of withdrawing or going backward (especially to escape something hazardous or unpleasant)

Definitions from the Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

What rhymes with retreat?36

Show 40 near rhymes
behewemesheseethesehereneedthreebetweeneachfeelteamkeeppleasefreerealweekmeanseenbelieveleastmeansneedsleavepolicedealfieldseemsdeheartvweekseastreceivedgreenleaguekeychief

All 36 rhymes for retreat, grouped by syllable

Retreat in a sentence

  • The soldiers, though they were conquered, did not retreat.jimkillock
  • I was uncertain whether to advance or to retreat.CK
  • He decided neither to advance nor to retreat.CM
  • The enemy behind us presently exists solely to cut off our retreat.unknown
  • A tactical retreat is sometimes interpreted as cowardice.patgfisher
  • Some arrangements about his horse and baggage formed the pretext for his sudden retreat.Hybrid
  • The general's missive ordered the troops to retreat before dawn.rul
  • There is no retreat and you have to fight to the end.Amastan

Sentences from Tatoeba, CC BY 2.0 FR, credited to their authors.

Forms of retreat

as a noun

plural
retreats

as a verb

past tense
retreated
present participle
retreating
third-person singular
retreats
past participle
retreated