as in to repel
to drive back
using tree branches, the campers were able to turn away the charging fox, which was apparently rabid
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of turn away
Hermanos has rented 26 rooms at a motel by the airport to help homeless and migrant families; several, like Perez, were turned away at the airport after trying to self-deport.
—
Lauren Costantino, Miami Herald, 4 Apr. 2026
For Chappel, this was the first point when policy turned away from universality and toward a politicized idea of deservedness.
—Trevor Jackson, The New York Review of Books, 4 Apr. 2026
But they were turned away by the guards, who told them that the ward’s detainees had been transferred elsewhere.
—Cora Engelbrecht, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026
More chatting, the camera turns away to shoot some B-roll.
—Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for turn away
Lauren Costantino, Miami Herald, 4 Apr. 2026
For Chappel, this was the first point when policy turned away from universality and toward a politicized idea of deservedness.
—Trevor Jackson, The New York Review of Books, 4 Apr. 2026
But they were turned away by the guards, who told them that the ward’s detainees had been transferred elsewhere.
—Cora Engelbrecht, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026
More chatting, the camera turns away to shoot some B-roll.
—Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for turn away
Recent Examples of Synonyms for turn away
Verb
-
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
-
The housekeeping team fogs the balés every week to keep most of the biting insects at bay, and gardens teeming with mosquito-repelling lemongrass and zodia plants help keep them at a distance.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The aircraft, carrying a flight instructor and student pilot, had climbed to roughly 1,700 feet before turning back toward the airport.—
Stephen Sorace,
FOXNews.com,
1 Apr. 2026
-
An American journalist who was kidnapped in Baghdad had tried to cross from Syria into Iraq three weeks earlier and was initially turned back, an Iraqi official said Wednesday.—
Qassim Abdul-Zahra,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Supporters describe him as a fighter but Harris resists the label of politician.—
Brian Unger,
CBS News,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Lori’s speech articulates the fundamental twinship of artists and critics—a reality that has always resisted attempts to drive a wedge between the two.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
In the mid-19th century, Kasanje was able to repulse a Portuguese military expedition.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Sigmund Freud believed that every crush has a strand of disgust, that people are attracted to what repulses them.—
Daniel Felsenthal,
Vulture,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
He regularly gets beat off the bounce by quicker players.—
Sam Vecenie,
New York Times,
2 Mar. 2026
-
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
-
The Huskies took control from the start, gave the Illini a brief lead in the first half and took several body blows in the final minutes to stave off a collapse.—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Apr. 2026
-
Drugs that manage or stave off illnesses like diabetes and blood clots will be taken less if at all.—
Andre Mouchard,
Oc Register,
4 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Turn away.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/turn%20away. Accessed 8 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
