# retraction

> English word · Noun · IPA /ɹɪˈtɹækʃən/ · frequency rank #33,825

## Definitions
1. An act or instance of retracting.
2. A statement printed or broadcast in a public forum which effects the withdrawal of an earlier assertion, and which concedes that the earlier assertion was in error.
3. A continuous function from a topological space onto a subspace which is the identity on that subspace.

## Etymology
From re- + traction or retract + -ion.

## Easily confused with
- **reaction** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/reaction-vs-retraction)
- **refraction** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/refraction-vs-retraction)
- **restriction** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/restriction-vs-retraction)

## Common misspellings (16)
`ertraction`, `rertaction`, `retarction`, `retracction`, `retraciton`, `retracsion`, `retractino`, `retractionn`, `retractoin`, `retracttion`, `retratcion`, `retrcation`, `retrraction`, `rettraction`, `rretraction`, `rteraction`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/retraction