retreat

plural retreats

1. The act of pulling back or withdrawing, as from something dangerous, or unpleasant.

   In a retreat he outruns any lackey.

   c. 1604–1605 (date written), William Shakespeare, “All’s Well, that Ends Well”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene iii]

   1. The act of reversing direction and receding from a forward position.
   2. governmentWithdrawal by a military force from a dangerous position or from enemy attack.

      The general opted for a swift retreat because he saw his troops were vastly outnumbered.

2. A peaceful, quiet place affording privacy or security.

   a mountain retreat

   5 more examples

   "[…] But come, Lady, we are too near the mouth of the cavern; let us seek its inmost recesses. […]" "Though all your actions are noble, […] is it fitting that I should accompany you alone into these perplexed retreats? Should we be found together, what would a censorious world think of my conduct?"

   1764 December 24 (indicated as 1765), Onuphrio Muralto, translated by William Marshal [pseudonyms; Horace Walpole], The Castle of Otranto, […], London: […] Tho[mas] Lownds […], →OCLC

   […] he built his son a house of pleasure, on purpose to keep him out of harm's way; and spared neither art nor cost to make it a delicious retreat.

   1692, Roger L’Estrange, “[The Fables of Æsop, &c.] Fab[le] 100. An Old Man and a Lion.”, in Fables, of Æsop and Other Eminent Mythologists: […], London: […] R[ichard] Sare, […], →OCLC, page 94

   That pleasing shade they sought, a soft retreat / From sudden April showers, a shelter from the heat.

   1700, [John] Dryden, “The Flower and the Leaf: Or, The Lady in the Arbour. A Vision.”, in Fables Ancient and Modern; […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC

   In a large bedroom upstairs, the window of which was thickly curtained with a great woollen shawl lately discarded by the landlady, Mrs. Rolliver, were gathered on this evening nearly a dozen persons, all seeking vinous bliss; all old inhabitants of the nearer end of Marlott, and frequenters of this retreat.

   1891, Thomas Hardy, chapter IV, in Tess of the d’Urbervilles: A Pure Woman Faithfully Presented […], volume I, London: James R[ipley] Osgood, McIlvaine and Co., […], →OCLC, phase the first (The Maiden), pages 40–41

   When Herbert Kochta first thought about designing a five-star alpine hotel just outside the Bavarian town of Berchtesgaden, a mere 300 yards from the ruins of the Berghof, Adolf Hitler's mountain retreat, the veteran Munich architect knew he could conceptualize a hotel on a hill in either of two ways.

   2005 April 28, Timothy W. Ryback, “The Hitler Shrine”, in The Atlantic, →ISSN

3. euphemisticobsoleterareA peaceful, quiet place in which to urinate and defecate: an outhouse; a lavatory.
4. A period of retirement, seclusion, or solitude, especially for meditation, prayer, or study.

   a company retreat

   4 more examples

   We both need a week retreat after those two stressful years working in the city.

   a Buddhist retreat

   Obviously she is trying to blend in at the über–bachelor party that is the GoJo corporate retreat in Norway.

   2023 April 24, Spencer Kornhaber, “Welcome to the Creepiest Corporate Retreat Ever”, in The Atlantic

   For example, Steve Jobs used to run an annual retreat for what he considered the 100 most important people at Apple, and these were not the 100 people highest on the org chart.

   2024 September 28, Paul Graham, “Founder Mode”, in Essays (blog)

5. governmentA signal for a military withdrawal.
6. governmentA bugle call or drumbeat signaling the lowering of the flag at sunset, as on a military base.

   to-morrow the Royal Standard will be hoisted at Edinburgh Castle from reveille to retreat.

   1898, Kate Douglas Wiggin, chapter 8, in Penelope’s Progress […], Boston, Mass.; New York, N.Y.: Houghton, Mifflin and Company […], →OCLC

7. governmentA military ceremony to lower the flag.
8. board gamesThe move of a piece from a threatened position.

present singular third person retreats · participle present retreating · participle past retreated · past retreated

1. intransitiveTo withdraw from a position, go back.
   1. intransitiveTo withdraw military forces.

      The general refused to order his soldiers to retreat, despite being vastly outnumbered.

2. intransitiveTo shrink back due to generally warmer temperatures. (of a glacier)
3. intransitiveTo slope back.

   a retreating forehead

   1 more example

   His face was a fair weakness, his chin retreated, and his hair lay in crisp, almost flaxen curls on his low forehead; his eyes were rather large, pale blue, and blankly staring.

   1898, H.G. Wells, The War of the Worlds, London: William Heinemann, page 111

present singular third person retreats · participle present retreating · participle past retreated · past retreated

1. alternativeintransitiveAlternative form of re-treat.

1. A locality in the Tamworth council area, north eastern New South Wales, Australia.
2. A locality in George Town council area and the City of Launceston, northern Tasmania, Australia.