What is "resile"

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.

1520s, "draw back," from obsolete French resiler "withdraw from an agreement," or directly from Latin resilire "to jump back" (see resilience). Meaning "spring back, start back, recoil" (of material things) from 1708. Related: Resiled; resiling.

vb. To start back; to recoil; to recede from a purpose.

1. v. draw back 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, 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]

4. return to the original position or state after being stretched or compressed; "The rubber tubes resile"