back down

No object

This verb takes no object at all.

How to say it

Stress the particle, not the verb: back DOWN. Saying “BACK down” is the clearest learner tell — the verb stays light and the particle carries the beat.

Do not release the /k/. Before the consonant of “down” the stop is held and swallowed rather than popped — the same unreleased-stop move as in hot dog. One smooth unit: “back down”.

What it means

To withdraw from a position or demand in an argument.
- “Neither side was willing to back down.”
- “He backed down as soon as she produced the receipts.”
Similar: yield, concede

The particle logic

down

Something decreases, collapses, settles, or gets recorded.

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More BACK phrasal verbs

Compare the whole family →

back up

To support someone or something with evidence or assistance.

back off

To retreat, or to stop pressuring someone.

back down — meaning, examples & how to say it