as in turning back
to drive back
the herd fended off attacking hyenas
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fending (off)
Verb
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According to police paperwork, Prut chased the man across the street before turning back to take the tool from the van and the keys to the vehicle.—
Erika Stanish,
CBS News,
3 Apr. 2026 -
Orion will zoom 4,000 miles (6,400 kilometers) beyond the moon before turning back, providing unprecedented and illuminated views of the lunar far side, at least for human eyes.—
Marcia Dunn,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Border policy used in past administrations The practice of not letting an asylum-seeker pass through a checkpoint was used periodically during the Obama administration, when border officers began turning away hundreds of Haitian asylum-seekers at ports of entry in California.—
Maureen Groppe,
USA Today,
24 Mar. 2026
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Hospitals ran out of blood, and started turning away patients.—
Cora Engelbrecht,
New Yorker,
20 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Results suggested this impact was due to the plants creating a physical barrier that disrupted the movement of cucumber beetles, rather than any effects of repelling them or attracting beneficial insects.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
3 Apr. 2026
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In drills, Taiwan has rehearsed repelling a seaborne assault with drones, fast patrol craft, mobile Hsiung Feng anti-ship missiles and Marine Corps teams.—
Micah McCartney,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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While there are dismemberments and other bits of gruesome violence to be found in the film, Badlands is largely aimed at endearing its audience rather than repulsing them.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Orbán began vilifying the EU, often comparing Brussels to the Soviet Union, even while receiving massive amounts of EU money, and resisting pressure to reverse democratic backsliding.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 Apr. 2026
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He was later charged with three counts of battery with injury on a police officer and one count of resisting an executive officer.—
Nancy Dillon,
Rolling Stone,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The dogs had driven the woman into the surf before a tourist came to her rescue, beating off the dingoes.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Maintaining ties with Tehran is crucial for containing domestic tensions and staving off an insurgency from the minority Baloch community there.—
Kyra Colah,
FOXNews.com,
23 Mar. 2026
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McCarthy stood on his head for much of the final 25 minutes, staving off 17 shots through the third period and first overtime.—
Tom Mulherin,
Boston Herald,
15 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Fending (off).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fending%20%28off%29. Accessed 10 Apr. 2026.
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