turn back

turned back; turning back; turns back

Definition of turn back

intransitive verb

1a : to go in the reverse direction

b : to stop going forward

2 : to refer to an earlier time or place

transitive verb

1 : to drive back or away

2 : to stop the advance of

3 : to fold back

4 : give back, return

turn back the clock

: to revert to or remind of a condition existing in the past

Synonyms Example Sentences Learn More about turn back

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Examples of turn back in a Sentence

a cavalry charge that was turned back by withering fire

Recent Examples on the Web When the final whistle sounded at Saputo Stadium, FC Cincinnati head coach Ron Jans turned back to his bench and was engulfed by his assistant coaches. — Pat Brennan, Cincinnati.com, "FC Cincinnati stuns playoff-hungry Montreal Impact with 1-0 win," 14 Sep. 2019 Skinner turned back to Saavedra to start the second half and the senior made his coach look good for the decision. — Daily Pilot, "Laguna Beach football loses at Dana Hills, suffers first setback," 13 Sep. 2019 As young adults realize how potent the Juul and other e-cigarettes can be, some are turning back to combustible cigarettes. — Ana B. Ibarra, CNN, "Seeking relief from nicotine addiction, some e-cigarette users turn to smoking," 12 Sep. 2019 The Lady Wolverines, struggling through some early sloppiness, turned back the Lady Mustangs’ best efforts to claim a 25-21, 23-25, 25-23, 32-30 win in a non-district matchup in the Friendswood gym. — Ted Dunnam, Houston Chronicle, "Volleyball: Clear Brook outlasts Friendswood in four sets," 10 Sep. 2019 The actress then turned back to tweeting about the original issue: Her demand to see the attendee list for a Trump 2020 fundraiser. — Caitlin O'kane, CBS News, "Debra Messing demands attendee list for Beverly Hills Trump fundraiser, president hits back," 2 Sep. 2019 This one turns back the clock to the Gamecocks’ 1980s look. — Paul Lukas, SI.com, "Uni Watch College Football Preview 2019," 29 Aug. 2019 That turns back the clock on how Hamilton used to run teams into the ground. — Richard Obert, azcentral, "What we learned from Week 1 in Arizona high school football," 24 Aug. 2019 Check out three ways the Raconteurs turned back the clock at the Egyptian Room: 1. — David Lindquist, Indianapolis Star, "The Raconteurs turn back clock (and shut down phones) to show off rock's classic traits," 13 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'turn back.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near turn back

turn around and (do something)

Statistics for turn back

Last Updated

24 Oct 2019

Time Traveler for turn back

The first known use of turn back was in the 15th century

See more words from the same century

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