fight back

phrasal verb

fought back; fighting back; fights back

1

: to attack or try to defeat someone who is attacking or trying to defeat oneself

We can't just let them make these accusations against us. We need to fight back!

2

: to make a new effort against an opponent

They fell behind early in the game, but they were able to fight back and tie the score in the second half.

Examples of fight back in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Dallas, again, got down to Pittsburgh early and was attempting to fight back all game. —R.j. Coyle, Dallas Morning News, 27 Jan. 2026

Xochitl Esparza, a 28-year-old immigrant rights advocate from Pilsen, said protests are important in encouraging others to stand up and fight back. —Madeline King, Chicago Tribune, 26 Jan. 2026

Yet Xi’s potent response to Trump’s trade war has shown that the Chinese leader can fight back—and will. —Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 26 Jan. 2026

No matter who wins the midterms this year, or the presidential election in 2028, the Army of The Homeland will remain, and its enemies in the Democratic Party seem to have little desire to fight back. —Ta-Nehisi Coates, Vanity Fair, 26 Jan. 2026

Rhymes for fight back

• aback
• anzac
• attack
• backpack
• backtrack
• bareback
• blackjack
• brownback
• buyback
• callback
• cognac
• comeback