Tilbaklegger

Tilbaklegger is a Norwegian term used to describe a person who withdraws, retracts, or reverses a position, statement, or claim. The verb tilbaklegge means to lay back, to pull back, to retract or undo something. As a noun, tilbaklegger denotes the actor performing such a reversal.

The word is formed from tilbak- meaning back, and legge meaning to lay or set, so literally to lay something back or put it back. It is primarily found in formal or written Norwegian, including journalism, politics, and legal prose. In everyday speech, more common expressions are retracting or withdrawing, such as å trekke tilbake.

A tilbaklegger can be a politician who withdraws a proposal, a spokesperson who retracts a statement, a company that reverses a decision, or any individual who changes a previously stated position. The term highlights the agency of the person who reverses or retracts, rather than the content of the reversal itself.

Related concepts include tilbaketrekning (withdrawal) and tilbaketrekking, which describe the act itself rather than the actor. The usage may vary by region and genre, but tilbaklegger remains a legitimate descriptor in formal Norwegian writing.