as in to repel
to drive back
a cavalry charge that was turned back by withering fire
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of turn back
The return of Sane’s old theme music, combined with the apparent implosion of Damage CTRL, may be hinting at a new chapter for her career, possibly a turn back to being a fan favorite.
—
Andrew Ravens, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
On fourth down, the Ravens turned back to Henry.
—Adam Grosbard, Oc Register, 12 Oct. 2025
The men hunted a little farther, stopped to eat lunch, then decided to investigate a small hill before turning back to drag out their deer.
—Marguerite Reiss, Outdoor Life, 9 Oct. 2025
Here our cicerone stopped and turned back to address us.
—Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for turn back
Andrew Ravens, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
On fourth down, the Ravens turned back to Henry.
—Adam Grosbard, Oc Register, 12 Oct. 2025
The men hunted a little farther, stopped to eat lunch, then decided to investigate a small hill before turning back to drag out their deer.
—Marguerite Reiss, Outdoor Life, 9 Oct. 2025
Here our cicerone stopped and turned back to address us.
—Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for turn back
Recent Examples of Synonyms for turn back
Verb
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Washington has recently appeared to grow more amenable to resuming military backing for Kyiv’s push to repel Russia’s invasion.—
Ben Smith,
semafor.com,
17 Oct. 2025
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Among the tasks for the troops were repelling migrants and, at least in one instance, troops used tear gas on a group of Venezuelan migrants at the border.—
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán,
NPR,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
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For a full display, the set includes 12 bundles of flowers with brown faux eucalyptus leaves, and each piece is made from artificial silk and plastic designed to resist fading and damage from the sun and other weather conditions.—
Alicia Geigel,
Southern Living,
18 Oct. 2025
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Unlike a killer hiding in the woods, a guy who gets you in your dreams is literally impossible to hide from, and watching our plucky heroine Nancy (Heather Langenkamp) trying to resist sleep presents a new kind of awful torture.—
Gwen Ihnat,
Entertainment Weekly,
18 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Evil is aided and abetted by those who stand back and do nothing, who swallow the lies and turn away from images of death and destruction that are wholly preventable.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Oct. 2025
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At the same time, people will not be turned away.—
David Lightman,
Sacbee.com,
15 Oct. 2025
Verb
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His family, dependent on his income and repulsed at what has become of their son, must then determine what is to be done with poor Gregor.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
14 Oct. 2025
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Ron spends a lot of time bouncing around the web, fascinated and repulsed in equal measure.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
9 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Dodgers were able to stave off the Brewers’ ninth-inning rally in Game 1 on Monday night, as Blake Treinen got Brice Turang to strike out to end the game with bases loaded for Milwaukee.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
15 Oct. 2025
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But the Fed shifted course last month, cutting interest rates to stave off the rising risks facing the labor market.—
Sylvan Lane,
The Hill,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
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On this play, Tegra Tshabola got beat off the ball, forcing Donaldson to take a different hole before running into a defender who center Carson Hinzman was on until the hole shifted.—
Cameron Teague Robinson,
New York Times,
15 Sep. 2025
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Chip Somodevilla/Pool Photo via AP What To Know Obama beat off stiff competition from the likes of David Attenborough and Tom Hanks to win the Outstanding Narrator prize for his narration of the five-part Netflix series Our Oceans, which examines marine life across the world's oceans.—
Daniel Orton,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Turn back.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/turn%20back. Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.
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