reneged

verb

past tense of renege
1
as in withdrew
to break a promise or agreement my so-called best friend promised to help me move, only to renege come Saturday morning

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in renounced
to solemnly or formally reject or go back on (as something formerly adhered to) refused to renege the principles by which she had always lived her life, even if it resulted in losing her business

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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 reneged In October, Stellantis reneged on a pledge to build the Jeep Compass in Canada, instead committing production of that vehicle to Illinois, the same plant that is now facing delay. — Liam Rappleye, Freep.com, 14 Aug. 2026 The lawsuit says the HFPA members were promised lifetime Golden Globes tickets and voting privileges, along with other perks, which Penske reneged on by attaching unworkable conditions. — Andrew Dalton, Fortune, 29 July 2026 Moreover, the filing claims that the new entity reneged on a number of promises, including that members would keep their lifetime voting rights as well as their lifetime tickets to the award show. — Stacy Perman, Los Angeles Times, 28 July 2026 For all the fun and disruption, the commitment to elite sport itself never felt reneged. — Megan Feringa, New York Times, 1 June 2026 People made clear that the story of Colorado becoming a state should include talk of the Sand Creek massacre and other atrocities, treaties reneged on and the treatment of children at Indian boarding schools. — Judith Kohler, Denver Post, 20 May 2026 But that’s precisely the commitment that American leaders have reneged on. — Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 19 May 2026 Well, Hamas promised to do it and reneged. — CBS News, 10 May 2026 And though the president reneged on an initiative to guide ships through the Strait of Hormuz hours after Rubio touted it to the press, Rubio's performance elicited largely rave reviews on the political right. — Justin Papp, CNBC, 6 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reneged
  1. withdrew
  2. renounced
  3. recalled
  4. retracted
  5. backed out
  6. denied
  7. backed off
  8. contradicted
Verb
  • The airline withdrew an application for a third flyover planned for this coming weekend, the aviation authority said.
    — Pete Muntean, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2026
  • The union later withdrew that measure, but only after the council struck a deal to require new hotel projects to go through a more extensive approval process at City Hall.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of withdrew
Verb
  • Yermolaiev has lived in the glitzy city state on the Mediterranean coast for several years, having left Ukraine and renounced his Ukrainian citizenship in 2019 to become a citizen of Cyprus.
    — Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Their virality comes at a time when the very generation that inspired them has largely renounced the label.
    — Margaux MacColl, Vanity Fair, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of renounced
Verb
  • The bystander recalled everyone around her jumping into action.
    — Angel Saunders, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Ternus, the colleague recalled, would spend about an hour in the morning reimagining a product with computer software, then walk into the in-house machine shop and fabricate the part himself on a mill or lathe.
    — Sebastian Herrera, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of recalled
Verb
  • That's because the sink and invisible dual-burner induction cooktop are concealed below a sliding top that works just like a bar or table when retracted.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 2 Sep. 2026
  • The study was found to be fraudulent; eventually, it was retracted entirely.
    — Ruby Cramer, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of retracted
Verb
  • Not wanting to risk a claw to the face, the officers backed out and reassessed the situation.
    — Mack DeGeurin, Popular Science, 2 Sep. 2026
  • The championship caps a year that began with London’s High Court ordering Palou to pay McLaren Racing more than $12 million in a breach of contract suit the team filed when the Spaniard backed out of two different deals with the racing team.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of backed out
Verb
  • The Attorney General’s Office could not be reached for comment on why the grant was denied.
    — Jake Ramsey, Oklahoma Watch, 30 Aug. 2026
  • If that application is denied, deportation could be a death sentence.
    — Matthew Kelly, Kansas City Star, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of denied
Verb
  • Cinema United, the movie theater trade organization, once vociferously opposed to the merger, backed off Tuesday and called for a settlement to avoid industry uncertainty.
    — Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 20 Aug. 2026
  • The Los Angeles district attorney has backed off felony charges against a police officer who secretly recorded his colleagues making racist remarks after facing criticism the response was too harsh and could deter whistleblowers from coming forward.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of backed off
Verb
  • But court filings, video evidence and investigators later contradicted key parts of that account, according to CBS News.
    — Anthony Thompson, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Castro initially claimed under oath that Sosa-Celis attacked him, but surveillance footage contradicted his claim.
    — Ryan Lucas, NPR, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of contradicted

Browse Nearby Words

renege
reneged
reneges
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Reneged.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reneged. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All