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"recede" is also used as a crossword clue. If that's what you saw, the answer is often ebb (3 letters).
Definitions
become faint or more distant
Word origin
Inherited from Middle English receden, from Middle French receder and its etymon Latin recedere (“to withdraw; to go back”), from re- + cedere (“to go”).
Used in a sentence
“Like the hollow roar / Of tides receding from th' insulted shore.”
“All bodies moved circularly have a perpetual endeavour to recede from the center.”
“to recede conquered territory”
Source: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0
Used as a crossword answer1 curated clues
01“Move back gradually”6 letters
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