withdraw

Saywith-DRAW/wɪðˈdɹɔ/UK/wɪðˈdɹɔː/

Formswithdraws, withdrawing, withdrew, withdrawn

20 meanings of withdraw

1
verbtransitive
To take money out of a bank account.
Like taking water out of a bucket you filled up earlier.
I need to withdraw fifty dollars before the store closes.
She withdrew her savings to pay for the trip.
Oppositedeposit
Note
2
verbtransitive
To take back something you gave or allowed before.
Like taking back a toy you let a friend borrow.
The school can withdraw your library card if you break the rules.
They withdrew their offer after she missed the deadline.
Similarrevoke, rescind, cancel, retract
Oppositegrant
Note
3
verbintransitive
To stop taking part in an activity, or to keep away from other people.
Like stepping back from a game so you no longer play.
He decided to withdraw from the race after hurting his knee.
She withdrew from the club because she had no free time.
Similarretire, retreat, exit
Oppositejoin
4
verbintransitive
To leave a place and go somewhere else, such as another room.
Like leaving a busy room to find a quiet corner.
After dinner, the guests withdraw to the living room for coffee.
She withdrew to her study to be alone.
Similarretire, retreat, adjourn
5
verbfigurativelytransitive
To take back something you said or wrote.
Like erasing words you wish you had never said.
He was forced to withdraw his remark after the backlash.
The author withdrew the claim in a later edition.
Similarretract, recant, revoke, disown, disavow
Note
6
verbintransitive
When soldiers leave a battle and pull back from their position.
Like backing away from a fight you cannot win.
The troops had to withdraw when they ran out of supplies.
The army withdrew before dawn to avoid the enemy.
Similarretreat
Oppositeadvance
Note
7
verbtransitive
To remove a person from a job, place, or situation.
Like pulling a player off the field during a game.
The coach decided to withdraw the injured player from the match.
They withdrew the ambassador after relations broke down.
Similarremove, recall
Oppositedeploy
Note
8
verbtransitive
To pull something back or away from where it was.
Like pulling your finger back from something sharp.
He had to withdraw his hand from the cold water quickly.
She withdrew the sword from its sheath.
Similarremove, extract, retract
Oppositeinsert
Note
9
verbintransitive
To stop using a drug that your body has come to need.
Like a body slowly getting used to life without something it leaned on.
He wanted to withdraw from the pills but feared the pain.
She withdrew from caffeine and had headaches for days.
Note
10
verbintransitive
To stop talking to people around you and get lost in your own thoughts.
Like a turtle pulling into its shell to hide from the world.
After the bad news, he began to withdraw and barely spoke.
She withdrew into herself for weeks following the loss.
Similarretreat

11
verbfigurativelytransitive
To officially stop something you started, such as a plan or a legal case.
Like pulling back a hand you had already reached out.
The organizers decided to withdraw the campaign at the last minute.
She withdrew the complaint after they reached an agreement.
Similardrop, abandon
12
verbfigurativelytransitive
To take a subject out of a discussion so people stop talking about it.
Like taking a card off the table so no one can play it.
The teacher chose to withdraw that question from the test.
They withdrew the issue from the meeting agenda.
Similarremove, drop
13
verbtransitive
To help someone stop using a drug their body has come to need.
Like helping someone slowly let go of something their body has gotten used to.
The clinic worked hard to withdraw him from the painkillers safely.
Doctors slowly withdrew her from the medication over several weeks.
Similarwean
14
verbtransitive
To turn your eyes away from something you were looking at.
Like quickly pulling your hand away from something hot, but with your eyes.
She tried to withdraw her eyes from the sad scene.
He withdrew his gaze and stared at the floor.
Similaravert, tear
15
verbintransitive
Of a man, to pull out of a partner's body before climax.
Worried about pregnancy, he chose to withdraw before climax.
They used no protection, so he withdrew before he finished.
16
verbfigurativelytransitive
To treat something as not really part of a group it would normally belong to.
Like crossing a name off a team list because you don't think it really belongs.
Many scientists now withdraw Pluto from the group of true planets.
Historians withdrew that document from the set of reliable sources.
Similarexclude
Oppositeinclude
Note
17
verbarchaictransitive
To pull something like a bolt, curtain, or veil to one side.
Like sliding a curtain to one side to let the light in.
She moved to withdraw the heavy curtain from the window.
[S]he was in no mood for sleep; so, putting her light upon the table and withdrawing the little window curtain, she gazed out pensively at the wild night sky.
1841, Charles Dickens, “Barnaby Rudge. Chapter 9.”Here, withdrawing means pulling the curtain to one side.
Note
18
verbobsoletetransitive
To turn someone away from a plan or goal they meant to follow.
Note
19
nounobsolete
An act of pulling back or taking something away.
Note
20
nounobsolete
A kind of legal dismissal that ends a lawsuit for good because the person who sued gives it up.
The court recorded a withdraw, ending the case for good.
He had to pay a withdraw after dropping his claim.
Note

Practice

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Origins

Meanings 1–18

From Middle English withdrawen, made from with- meaning 'away, back' plus drawen meaning 'to pull or drag'.

Meanings 19–20

From Middle English withdrawe, meaning the act of stopping a legal case. It comes from the verb withdrawen (see etymology 1).