Dictionary
Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.
backpedal en · NOUN
Pronunciation
Etymology
From back + pedal.
Meanings
-
An act of backpedalling (in any sense).
He should come out of his backpedal and turn to run only when a receiver threatens to get behind him in the zone.
2013, Greg Colby, Football: Steps to Success, page 120:They were doing 50 yards of lunges, 50 yards of backpedals, sprinting for 50 yards and power walking one mile around the track to help him reach his target heart rate.
2014 August 4, Talia Day, “No more ‘Big Ben’: City leader loses 145 pounds”, in CNN:
Forms
backpedal en · VERB
Pronunciation
Etymology
From back + pedal.
Meanings
-
(intransitive) To pedal backwards on a bicycle.
The road was on a hill and the boy was going down the slope, and as he flashed by he started backpedalling very quickly so that the free-wheeling mechanism of his bike made a loud whirring sound.
1984, Roald Dahl, Boy:
-
(intransitive) To step backwards.
The player had to backpedal before catching the ball.
-
(idiomatic, intransitive) To distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement; back off from an idea.
Though initially adopting a hard-line stance, the politician soon started to backpedal.
There were harsher comments from Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas: "The negotiations are in a state of paralysis, and the result of Israel's intransigence and America's backpedalling is that there is no hope of negotiations on the horizon."
2009 November 2, Ian Black, “Arab anger as Hillary Clinton backs Israel on settlements”, in The Guardian:President Donald Trump backpedaled on his threat to shut down the southern border, saying Thursday that now he doesn’t think the US will “ever have to close the border.”
2019 April 4, Maegan Vazquez, “Trump backpedals: ‘I don’t think we’ll ever have to close the border’”, in CNN:The best car sound of 1999 is that of a new Rover 75 being furiously backpedalled through the motoring page of the Sunday Times.
1999 February 15, Simon Hacker, “Rover 75”, in The Guardian:Adidas is backpedaling fast over its latest attempt to protect its iconic three-stripe mark.
2023 March 29, Anna Cooban, “Adidas does rapid U-turn in Black Lives Matter logo dispute”, in CNN:
Forms
Deriveds
backpedal brake · backpedaller · backpedaler
Synonyms
walk back (distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · backtrack (distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · climb down (distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement)
Translations (52)
fr rétropédaler (to pedal backwards on a bicycle) · pl wycofywać się (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · pt recuar (to step backwards) · de zurückrudern (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · it arretrare (to step backwards) · de einen Rückzieher machen (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · es recejar (to step backwards) · es contrapedalear (to pedal backwards on a bicycle) · pt pedalar para trás (to pedal backwards on a bicycle) · es desdecirse (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · pt contrapedalar (to pedal backwards on a bicycle) · fr faire marche arrière (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · it ritrattarsi (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · es recular (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · pt desdizer-se (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · es ciar (to step backwards) · ru давать заднюю (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · de zurücktreten (to step backwards) · de nach hinten treten (to step backwards) · es retroceder (to step backwards) · fi peruuttaa (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · it regredire (to step backwards) · es recular (to step backwards) · fr rétropédaler (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · fi ottaa takapakkia (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · es retropedalear (to pedal backwards on a bicycle) · pt mudar de opinião (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · pl iść do tyłu (to step backwards) · ru переобуться (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · pl pedałować do tyłu (to pedal backwards on a bicycle) · es cejar (to step backwards) · io kontre-pedalagar (to pedal backwards on a bicycle) · pt voltar atrás (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · de zurückziehen (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · it retrocedere (to step backwards) · fi astua taaksepäin (to step backwards) · it fare un passo indietro (to step backwards) · fr faire machine arrière (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · pt retroceder (to step backwards) · fi polkea taaksepäin (to pedal backwards on a bicycle) · it indietreggiare (to step backwards) · nl gas terugnemen (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · pt retropedalar (to pedal backwards on a bicycle) · de einen Schritt zurück machen (to step backwards) · fr reculer (to step backwards) · fi ottaa takapakkia (to step backwards) · de rückwärts treten (to pedal backwards on a bicycle) · it rimangiarsi le parole (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · it disdirsi (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · pl wycofać się (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · es retractarse (to distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement) · fi peruuttaa (to step backwards)