withdraw Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. verb pull back or move away or backward
    retire; recede; pull back; move back; pull away; draw back; retreat.
    • The enemy withdrew
    • The limo pulled away from the curb
  2. verb withdraw from active participation
    retire.
    • He retired from chess
  3. verb release from something that holds fast, connects, or entangles
    disengage.
    • I want to disengage myself from his influence
    • disengage the gears
  4. verb cause to be returned
    recall; call in; call back.
    • recall the defective auto tires
    • The manufacturer tried to call back the spoilt yoghurt
  5. verb take back what one has said
    swallow; take back; unsay.
    • He swallowed his words
  6. verb keep away from others
    seclude; sequester; sequestrate.
    • He sequestered himself in his study to write a book
  7. verb break from a meeting or gathering
    adjourn; retire.
    • We adjourned for lunch
    • The men retired to the library
  8. verb retire gracefully
    bow out.
    • He bowed out when he realized he could no longer handle the demands of the chairmanship
  9. verb remove (a commodity) from (a supply source)
    take out; draw; draw off.
    • She drew $2,000 from the account
    • The doctors drew medical supplies from the hospital's emergency bank
  10. verb lose interest
    retire.
    • he retired from life when his wife died
  11. verb make a retreat from an earlier commitment or activity
    back away; back out; crawfish; pull back; pull in one's horns; crawfish out; retreat.
    • We'll have to crawfish out from meeting with him
    • He backed out of his earlier promise
    • The aggressive investment company pulled in its horns
  12. verb remove something concrete, as by lifting, pushing, or taking off, or remove something abstract
    take away; take; remove.
    • remove a threat
    • remove a wrapper
    • Remove the dirty dishes from the table
    • take the gun from your pocket
    • This machine withdraws heat from the environment

WordNet

With*draw" transitive verb
Etymology
With against + draw.
Wordforms
imperfect Withdrew ; past participle Withdrawn ; present participle & verbal noun Withdrawing
Definitions
  1. To take back or away, as what has been bestowed or enjoyed; to draw back; to cause to move away or retire; as, to withdraw aid, favor, capital, or the like.
    Impossible it is that God should withdraw his presence from anything. Hooker.
  2. To take back; to recall or retract; as, to withdraw false charges.
With*draw" intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To retire; to retreat; to quit a company or place; to go away; as, he withdrew from the company. "When the sea withdrew." King Horn. Syn. -- To recede; retrograde; go back.

Webster 1913