beat back

phrasal verb

beat back; beaten back or beat back; beating back; beats back
: to force (someone) to go back or to retreat by fighting
Our troops were beaten back by enemy forces.
Police used batons to beat the protesters back.

Examples of beat back in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
However, its defenders quickly beat back those charges. Nate Jones, Vulture, 31 Jan. 2026 Lynch has easily beaten back Republican opponents over the past few decades, and his seat is considered reliably safe for Democrats, who are trying to take back the House from Republicans. Joe Battenfeld, Boston Herald, 27 Jan. 2026 After beating back Luke and his forces and using the Golden Fleece to restore Thalia’s tree, and therefore the barrier surrounding camp, Thalia herself is freed from the tree. Rick Porter, HollywoodReporter, 21 Jan. 2026 Rolland Trowbridge is a Nome-ite who assembles military matériel for colleagues to take to the front lines in Ukraine, in an effort to beat back the invading Russians. Ian Frazier, New Yorker, 19 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for beat back

Cite this Entry

“Beat back.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/beat%20back. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!