1. the act of withdrawing or taking back a statement, claim, or accusation
2. the act of pulling something back or drawing it in
3. a formal statement withdrawing or correcting a previous published claim or article
Usage: academic; journalism

Examples

• The newspaper published a retraction of the false story.
• His retraction of the accusation came too late to prevent damage.
• The cat’s claws showed quick retraction when it relaxed.
• The journal issued a retraction after discovering flawed data.
• She demanded a public retraction of his harmful comments.
• The muscle’s retraction caused the limb to pull inward.
• The retraction of landing gear occurred smoothly after takeoff.