renege

verb

re·​nege ri-ˈneg 

 also  -ˈnāg,

-ˈnig;

rē- 

reneged; reneging

intransitive verb

1

: to go back on a promise or commitment

2

: revoke

3

obsolete : to make a denial

transitive verb

: deny, renounce

reneger noun

Synonyms

• back down
• back off
• back out
• cop out
• fink out

Examples of renege in a Sentence

They had promised to pay her tuition but later reneged.

my so-called best friend promised to help me move, only to renege come Saturday morning

Recent Examples on the Web

Despite the resumption of those shipments, a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas continued to hold Sunday, despite each side accusing the other of reneging on parts of the deal. —Freddie Clayton, NBC News, 26 Jan. 2025

Netanyahu’s office had accused Hamas of reneging on parts of the agreement in an attempt to gain further concessions — without specifying which parts. —Samy Magdy, Chicago Tribune, 17 Jan. 2025

What To Know Netanyahu's office said that Hamas reneged on a previous agreement to allow Israel a say in which prisoners, previously convicted of murder, would be released in exchange for hostages, ultimately delaying the approval of the ceasefire deal by the Cabinet. —Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 17 Jan. 2025

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday accused Hamas of reneging on parts of a ceasefire and hostage release agreement announced the day before. —Sarah Fortinsky, The Hill, 16 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Medieval Latin renegare

First Known Use

1548, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Kids Definition

renege

verb

re·​nege ri-ˈnig  -ˈneg 

-ˈnēg,

-ˈnāg

reneged; reneging

1

: deny

2

: to go back on a promise or agreement

reneged on paying the debt

reneger noun