Phrasal Verbs 1 min read Published January 2025 10 learners asked about this

What does "take back" mean?

Q: What's another way to say "take back"?

"Retract" - very formal"Withdraw" - formal"Eat your words" - idiom: to admit you were wrong

Three meanings:1. To retract something you said:"I take it back - you were right all along.""Take back what you said." (demand a retraction)"I take back everything I said about that film."2. To return something to a shop or place:"I need to take back these shoes - they don't fit.""Can you take th...

Three meanings

1. To retract something you said

"I take it back - you were right all along."
"Take back what you said." (demand a retraction)
"I take back everything I said about that film."

2. To return something to a shop or place

"I need to take back these shoes - they don't fit."
"Can you take this back to the library?"

3. To recapture or reclaim

"The team fought to take back their lead."
"She's trying to take back control of the situation."

Separable

"Take back the comment." ✓ / "Take the comment back." ✓ / "Take it back." ✓

Emotional meaning

"It takes me back" - it reminds me of the past:
"That song takes me back to my school days." (transports you to a memory)

Register

All meanings are casual to neutral. The retraction meaning is especially common in spoken arguments and debates.

A native would say (meaning 1)

"Retract" - very formal
"Withdraw" - formal
"Eat your words" - idiom: to admit you were wrong