turned back

verb

past tense of turn back
as in repulsed
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

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 turned back But this is about Folk, the 41-year-old whose right leg could be the Falcons’ biggest point of improvement from last season and a 19-year veteran who has somehow, someway, turned back the clock. — Daniel Flick, AJC.com, 6 Sep. 2026 The 42-year-old turned back the clock Sunday, with 10 strikeouts in seven scoreless innings against the Seattle Mariners. — Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 31 Aug. 2026 But recently the center turned back the clock to serve iconic Boston Coolers for a special event. — Scott Talley, Freep.com, 31 Aug. 2026 Tropical Storm Dolly may have turned back into just a tropical wave on Friday, but the National Hurricane Center is now giving it as well as a new system in the Gulf a chance to develop. — Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 29 Aug. 2026 While not everyone in Dyer had had their power restored, many whose service was turned back on in the last day just lost power again. — Megan De Mar, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026 Madonna has turned back the clock with a leading 11 nominations for the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards, while Taylor Swift follows with nine, setting up another potentially historic Moon Person showdown. — Spin Staff, SPIN, 18 Aug. 2026 The fire turned back into California late Thursday morning, burning in Lassen County just above the Sierra County line, fire maps showed. — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 13 Aug. 2026 The proposal, which called for overhauling the judicial selection process and directly electing Supreme Court justices, was decisively turned back on Tuesday. — Ben Wheeler, Kansas City Star, 5 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for turned back
  1. repulsed
  2. turned away
  3. repelled
  4. resisted
Verb
  • His recent comments didn’t favor the Browns fanbase, and many Cleveland fans seem viscerally repulsed by him.
    — Andy Behrens, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Most Americans are repulsed by the core ideas of radical leftists.
    — Steve Forbes, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of repulsed
Verb
  • In three more states, many eligible families who applied were simply turned away.
    — Moriah Balingit, Los Angeles Times, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Ultimately, Cramer said investors have turned away from the Magnificent Seven just as the companies could begin reaping the rewards of their massive AI investments.
    — Alexa LoMonaco, CNBC, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of turned away
Verb
  • Some microbiomes attracted the skeeters; others repelled them.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 1 Sep. 2026
  • The narrator, though curious to speak herself, is finally repelled.
    — Maya Binyam, New Yorker, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of repelled
Verb
  • After years staying in her home state during the pandemic, Hagerman has resisted the urge to upsize her house to keep rent costs down.
    — Alex Harring, CNBC, 5 Sep. 2026
  • Chieftain Rajah Tupas resisted the Spanish for nearly a month before Legazpi bombarded local villages, forcing Tupas into a settlement.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of resisted

Browse Nearby Words

turned away
turned back
turned color
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Cite this Entry

“Turned back.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/turned%20back. Accessed 13 Sep. 2026.

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