Word
withdraw
Phoneticswith·draw, stress on the second syllable
US/wɪðˈdɹɔ/
UK/wɪðdɹˈɔː/
Irregular verb
Forms
Infinitive
withdraw
Past
withdrew
Past participle
withdrawn
Definitions
01to take out money
B1 · Intermediate Finance
v. to take money out of a bank account.
v. to extract funds from a financial institution or account. Transitive — requires a direct object representing the currency or amount.
Español:sacar
“I need to find an ATM so I can withdraw some cash for the market.”
“The investor decided to withdraw his capital from the venture after the quarterly report revealed significant structural deficits.”
Antonyms
02to pull back or remove
B2 · Upper Intermediate
v. to move something back or take it away from a place.
v. to pull or draw something back from a fixed position or to remove support or presence.
“The company decided to withdraw the product from shops because of a safety problem.”
“The general ordered the troops to withdraw from the border to avoid further escalating the diplomatic crisis.”
03to take back a statement
C1 · Advanced Formal
v. to say that something you said before is no longer true or official.
v. to formally retract a statement, accusation, or offer. Often used in legal or official contexts.
“The witness was asked to withdraw his comment after the lawyer complained.”
“Under intense pressure from the board, the spokesperson was forced to withdraw her previous remarks regarding the merger.”
04to leave or go away
B2 · Upper Intermediate
v. to leave a room or a group of people, often to be alone or go somewhere quiet.
v. to move away from a social situation or a specific location to a more private one. Often takes the preposition 'to' or 'from'.
“After dinner, the guests withdrew to the garden for coffee.”
“Feeling overwhelmed by the noise of the gala, she quietly withdrew to the library to recover her composure.”
05to stop an addiction
C2 · Proficiency Medicine Technical
v. to stop taking a drug or alcohol that your body is used to.
v. to cease the consumption of an addictive substance and experience the resulting physiological distress.
“It can be very dangerous to withdraw from certain medications without a doctor's help.”
“The clinical protocol ensures that patients withdraw from the heavy sedative gradually to minimize the risk of seizures.”
Collocations
Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “withdraw” in context.
Verb
01. withdraw from the competition
“The athlete had to withdraw from the competition due to a sudden hamstring injury.”
verb + prep + noun
02. withdraw money from the account
“I need to find an ATM so I can withdraw money from the account for the taxi.”
verb + noun + prep + noun
03. withdraw support for the proposal
“Several committee members decided to withdraw support for the proposal after the new data was released.”
verb + noun + prep + noun
04. withdraw troops from the region
“The government has finally agreed to withdraw troops from the region to facilitate peace talks.”
verb + noun + prep + noun
Adverb
05. abruptly withdraw the product
“The company decided to abruptly withdraw the product from the market following safety concerns.”
adv + verb + noun
06. gradually withdraw from social life
“After the incident, he began to gradually withdraw from social life and spent more time alone.”
adv + verb + prep + adj + noun
Real-World Examples
“Hezbollah has rejected the deal, saying it will not agree until Israel withdraws from Lebanon.” “On Sunday, Kushner had met Hamas’s political chief in Egypt, where Hamas insisted Israel must first withdraw its troops from the 60% of Gaza that Israel occupies.” “New Zealand break rank with Oceania's football governing body to become the latest nation to withdraw support for Fifa president Gianni Infantino.” Etymology
PIE word *wí From Middle English withdrawen, withdrauen (“to depart, leave, move away; (reflexive) to go away; (reflexive) to leave someone’s service; (often reflexive) to draw back or retreat (from a battlefield or dangerous place), withdraw; to abandon, desert; to go, go forth; to move; of the sea, water, etc.: to (cause to) ebb, recede, subside; to disappear; to slacken, wane; (often reflexive) to cease, stop; to desist, refrain; (reflexive) to go back on, recant; to avoid, eschew; to bring under control, contain, suppress; to curb, curtail; to delay, put off; to demur, refuse; to carry or take away, deprive of, remove; to contract, draw away or in, retract; to deny, refuse; to revoke; to withhold; to divert; to separate; to adopt, borrow, imitate”) [and other forms], from with- (prefix meaning ‘away; back’) + drawen, drauen (“to drag, pull, tow, tug, draw [and other senses]”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰregʰ- (“to drag, pull; to run”)); see further at with- and draw. The English word is analysable as with- + draw.
From Middle English withdrawe (“act of stopping a judicial proceeding”), from withdrawen, withdrauen (verb): see etymology 1.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
VERB
NOUN
Domains
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.B2 FirstIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.5.5–6.5TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 4.0–4.572–94TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.785–944
- Frequency
- Common
- Level
- B2 · Upper IntermediateOxford
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/withdraw
Traducciones: Kaikki.org (Wiktionary), CC BY-SA 4.0