Retreat
WordNet
noun
(1) Withdrawal for prayer and study and meditation
"The religious retreat is a form of vacation activity"
(2) (military) withdrawal of troops to a more favorable position to escape the enemy's superior forces or after a defeat
"The disorderly retreat of French troops"
(3) An area where you can be alone
(4) (military) a bugle call signaling the lowering of the flag at sunset
(5) (military) a signal to begin a withdrawal from a dangerous position
(6) A place of privacy; a place affording peace and quiet
verb
(7) 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"
(8) Pull back or move away or backward
"The enemy withdrew"
"The limo pulled away from the curb"
(9) Move back
"The glacier retrogrades"
(10) Move away, as for privacy
"The Pope retreats to Castelgondolfo every summer"
WiktionaryText
Etymology
From Middle English retret, from Old French retrait or retret (to draw back), from Latin retrahere (retract).
Noun
- The act of pulling back or withdrawing, as from something dangerous, or unpleasant.
- The act of reversing direction and receding from a forward position.
- A peaceful, quiet place affording privacy, or security.
- A period of retirement, seclusion, or solitude.
- A period of meditation, prayer or study
- Withdrawal by military force from a dangerous position or from enemy attack.
- A signal for a military withdrawal.
- A bugle call or drumbeat signaling the lowering of the flag at sunset, as on a military base.
- A military ceremony to lower the flag.