HANGING BACK Synonyms: 42 Similar and Opposite Words

hanging back

verb

present participle of hang back

as in hesitating

to show uncertainty about the right course of action she hung back in offering her opinion about her daughter's career choices because it wasn't her business

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of hanging back Dad is hanging back in the doorway. — Literary Hub, 24 Nov. 2025 After Fester fried the hospital's power grid, allowing the LOIS patients to escape and begin attacking Judi, Wednesday noticed that one female patient was hanging back. — Megan McCluskey, Time, 6 Aug. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hanging back

Verb

Fertilizer is often bought months ahead of planting, so hesitating in the fall can mean less goes on the ground in the spring.

— Jayash Paudel, The Conversation, 27 Aug. 2026
Cueto was known for hesitating while in his pitching motion, or wiggling on the mound.

— Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of hesitating

Verb

Know More Saudi Arabia has been working on several measures in a bid to boost trading volumes on the stock exchange and reenergize new stock listings that had been faltering even before the Iran war spooked investors.

— Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 26 Aug. 2026
The same list of conditions is relevant to the debates about our faltering literacy.

— Christopher Coffman, The Conversation, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of faltering

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hanging (at)

hanging back

hanging fire

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“Hanging back.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hanging%20back. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of hanging back

verb

Example Sentences

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