recantEnglishOxford American Thesaurusrecant verb 1 he was forced to recant his position, and was subjected to imprisonment: renounce, forswear, disavow, deny, repudiate, renege on, abjure, relinquish, abandon; archaic forsake. ▷antonyms reaffirm. 2 he was charged with heresy, refused to recant, and was put to death: change one's mind, be apostate, defect, renege; rare apostatize, tergiversate. 3 he recanted his testimony: retract, take back, withdraw, disclaim, disown, recall, unsay.