climb-down

7.4

An act of saying you were wrong or changing your view

noun
/ˈklaɪmˌdaʊn/

: retractación

I would expect a gradual winding down of its fervent, almost religious adherence to official science over the next few months, because admitting they got it wrong in one fell swoop would be a humiliating climb down.

Examples

After much pressure from the public, the politician had to make a climb-down and retract his controversial statements.
In a surprising climb-down, the CEO acknowledged the flaws in their approach to the project.
The company's sudden climb-down on the price hike disappointed many loyal customers who felt misled.

Synonyms

concession

vsclimb-down

52 5.1

Saying you accept a point or a demand so talks can continue

is admitting error or changing position rather than merely yielding to pressure

retraction

vsclimb-down

Literature

23 6.0

An official statement saying that something written or said before was wrong

is a broader admission of error or position change beyond formal notice

change of mind

vsclimb-down

4 2.8

A decision to take back a previous choice or opinion

involves admitting error or changing a stated position, often beyond a private decision

recantation

vsclimb-down

Formal

2 9.0

A public statement saying you no longer believe something you said before

is a general act of admitting wrong or changing view, not always formal

backtracking

vsclimb-down

1 5.5

Changing a previous promise, decision, or opinion

is an admission of being wrong or a changed position, not just reversal

backflip

vsclimb-down

Literature

1 6.6

A sudden public change of a decision or promise

is admitting wrong or changing stance without the emphasis on spectacle

backdown

vsclimb-down

6.2

An act of taking back a public statement or plan after pressure

admits error or changes stance rather than only abandoning a promise

conceding

vsclimb-down

6.4

Admitting you have lost or accepting that others are right

focuses on admitting wrong or changing opinion rather than only admitting defeat

Antonyms

to stand firm

22 3.7

Keep your decision or opinion when others try to make you change

to stick to one's guns

Informal

12 6.7

Keep supporting your idea when others disagree

How Big

capitulation

5 8.3

recantation

Formal

2 9.0

retraction

Literature

23 6.0

climb-down

7.4

concession

102 4.1

Surface Forms

climb-down singular

climb-downs plural

Morphology

climb-down = climb (semi-transparent) = down + climb

The noun derives from the phrasal verb 'climb down' meaning 'to retract'—the figurative sense is conventionalized and may not be obvious from the literal components. [Postprocessing: moved 'down' from base_words to prefix]

Etymology

Climb-down comes from the plain picture of climb plus down, like someone who climbs up and then goes back down. So a climb-down is when a person or group 'steps back' from an earlier position or 'admits they were wrong'.