resile

2 definitions found

resile - Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :

  resile \re*sile"\ (r[-e]*z[imac]l"), v. i. [imp. & p. p.
     resiled (-z[imac]ld"); p. pr. & vb. n. resiling.] [L.
     resilire to leap or spring back; pref. re- re- + salire to
     leap, spring. See Salient.]
     To start back; to recoil; to recede from a purpose. --J.
     Ellis.
     [1913 Webster] resilience

resile - WordNet (r) 2.1 (2005) :

  resile
      v 1: pull out from an agreement, contract, statement, etc.; "The
           landlord cannot resile from the lease"
      2: spring back; spring away from an impact; "The rubber ball
         bounced"; "These particles do not resile but they unite after
         they collide" [syn: bounce, resile, take a hop,
         spring, bound, rebound, recoil, reverberate,
         ricochet]
      3: formally reject or disavow a formerly held belief, usually
         under pressure; "He retracted his earlier statements about
         his religion"; "She abjured her beliefs" [syn: abjure,
         recant, forswear, retract, resile]
      4: return to the original position or state after being
         stretched or compressed; "The rubber tubes resile"