Withdraw vs. Retract

Withdrawverb

(transitive) To pull (something) back, aside, or away.

Retractverb

(transitive) To pull back inside.

‘An airplane retracts its wheels for flight.’; ‘The wheelchair ramp on the bus wouldn't retract after use, it required persuasion by hand before the bus could move.’;

Withdrawverb

(intransitive) To stop talking to, or interacting with, other people and start thinking thoughts that are not related to what is happening around.

Retractverb

(ambitransitive) To draw back; to draw up.

‘Muscles retract after amputation.’; ‘A cat can retract its claws.’;

Withdrawverb

(transitive) To take back (a comment, etc).

‘to withdraw false charges’;

Retractverb

(transitive) To take back or withdraw something one has said.

‘I retract all the accusations I made about the senator and sincerely hope he won't sue me.’;

Withdrawverb

(transitive) To remove, to stop providing (one's support, etc).

Retractverb

To take back, as a grant or favour previously bestowed; to revoke.

Withdrawverb

(transitive) To extract (money from an account).

Retractverb

To draw back; to draw up or shorten; as, the cat can retract its claws; to retract a muscle.

Withdrawverb

(intransitive) To retreat.

Retractverb

To withdraw; to recall; to disavow; to recant; to take back; as, to retract an accusation or an assertion.

‘I would as freely have retracted this charge of idolatry as I ever made it.’;

Withdrawverb

(intransitive) To be in withdrawal from an addictive drug etc.

Retractverb

To take back,, as a grant or favor previously bestowed; to revoke.

Withdrawverb

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.’;

Retractverb

To draw back; to draw up; as, muscles retract after amputation.

Withdrawverb

To take back; to recall or retract; as, to withdraw false charges.

Retractverb

To take back what has been said; to withdraw a concession or a declaration.

‘She will, and she will not; she grants, denies,Consents, retracts, advances, and then files.’;

Withdrawverb

To retire; to retreat; to quit a company or place; to go away; as, he withdrew from the company.

Retractnoun

The pricking of a horse's foot in nailing on a shoe.

Withdrawverb

pull back or move away or backward;

‘The enemy withdrew’; ‘The limo pulled away from the curb’;

Retractverb

formally reject or disavow a formerly held belief, usually under pressure;

‘He retracted his earlier statements about his religion’; ‘She abjured her beliefs’;

Withdrawverb

withdraw from active participation;

‘He retired from chess’;

Retractverb

pull away from a source of disgust or fear

Withdrawverb

release from something that holds fast, connects, or entangles;

‘I want to disengage myself from his influence’; ‘disengage the gears’;

Retractverb

use a surgical instrument to hold open (the edges of a wound or an organ)

Withdrawverb

cause to be returned;

‘recall the defective auto tires’; ‘The manufacturer tried to call back the spoilt yoghurt’;

Retractverb

pull inward or towards a center;

‘The pilot drew in the landing gear’; ‘The cat retracted his claws’;

Withdrawverb

take back what one has said;

‘He swallowed his words’;

Withdrawverb

keep away from others;

‘He sequestered himself in his study to write a book’;

Withdrawverb

remove something concrete, as by lifting, pushing, taking off, etc. or remove something abstract;

‘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’;

Withdrawverb

break from a meeting or gathering;

‘We adjourned for lunch’; ‘The men retired to the library’;

Withdrawverb

retire gracefully;

‘He bowed out when he realized he could no longer handle the demands of the chairmanship’;

Withdrawverb

remove (a commodity) from (a supply source);

‘She drew $2,000 from the account’; ‘The doctors drew medical supplies from the hospital's emergency bank’;

Withdrawverb

lose interest;

‘he retired from life when his wife died’;

Withdrawverb

make a retreat from an earlier commitment or activity;

‘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’;

Withdrawverb

remove or take away (something) from a particular place or position

‘she prised open the lid and withdrew a slim diamond ring’; ‘Ruth withdrew her hand from his’;

Withdrawverb

take (money) out of an account

‘normally you can withdraw up to £50 in cash’;

Withdrawverb

discontinue or no longer provide (something previously supplied or offered)

‘the party threatened to withdraw its support for the government’;

Withdrawverb

say that (a statement one has made) is untrue or unjustified

‘he failed to withdraw his remarks and apologize’;

Withdrawverb

(of a man) practise coitus interruptus

‘it put me off taking the Pill—my partner now withdraws’;

Withdrawverb

leave or cause to leave a place or situation

‘UN forces withdrew from the province’; ‘both countries agreed to withdraw their troops’;

Withdrawverb

cease to participate in an activity or be a member of a team or organization

‘his rival withdrew from the race on the second lap’;

Withdrawverb

prevent (someone) from participating in an activity

‘patients were withdrawn from therapy when they had been depression-free for a month’;

Withdrawverb

depart to another place in search of quiet or privacy

‘he went silent and withdrew into himself’; ‘they withdrew to their rooms for a siesta’;

Withdrawverb

cease to take an addictive drug

‘for the cocaine user, it is possible to withdraw without medication’;