Can I delete certain texts from an iMessage thread but retrieve them later?

[boipayn]

I want to delete certain texts from a single iMessage thread for a period of time but be able to retrieve them later on my iPhone 6s. I am running iOS 11 beta and currently sync all iMessages to my Mac as well. I don’t mind if the deleted messages stay in the thread on the Mac- I just need them off my phone for a bit. Thanks.

 

[Quis89]

I believe the answer to this question is no. Once you delete them they are gone. With iMessages going to the cloud I believe that will remove them from all devices when you remove them. You'd want to maybe forward them to an email or take screenshots if you need to preserve them.