What is the Latin word for recant?

The usual Latin words for “recant” are revocō, fateor, profiteor. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

English → Latin

“recant” in Latin

revocōto recall (troops, etc.), to call back; to withdraw; to revive fateorto confess, admit; to acknowledge, own; to show, indicate profiteorto declare publicly, own (up to) or confess openly, acknowledge, avow, profess; to offer freely, promise; to profess, cl

The English word recant itself goes back to Latin canō, through recanto.

Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864

recant

revocare (post-Augustan, in this sense, Freund): dicta retractare (Virgil); recantare (Horace, of withdrawing poetical abuse; of wishing it, not unsaid, but unsung): ☞ palinodiam canere, very late, Macrobius; *quod dixi, indictum esse velle, fateri or profiteri (readily): sententiam mutasse (declare that one has changed one’s opinion).

Quick answer

What is the Latin word for recant?: The usual Latin words for “recant” are revocō, fateor, profiteor. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.