turning back

verb

present participle of turn back
as in turning away
to drive back a cavalry charge that was turned back by withering fire

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 turning back Tide turns back to franchises Then the tide started turning back toward familiar waters. — Andrew McGowan, Fortune, 4 Oct. 2026 Once the company and its shareholders become accustomed to such a financial boost, an environment where individual guest spending sharply increases even when domestic park attendance is soft or steady, there’s likely no turning back. — Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026 Reinhart’s vintage Elie Saab moment comes at a time when several high-profile stars are turning back the clock and looking to the runway from the early aughts and ’90s for their red carpet and project promotional tour stints. — Julia Teti, Footwear News, 17 Sep. 2026 Things opened up in the second half, highlighted by tight end Travis Kelce turning back the clock for a 59-yard gain in the open field. — Kansas City Star, 15 Sep. 2026 The mansion was damaged during a Los Angeles-area coastal flooding advisory over lingering effects of Marie, which had been a hurricane before turning back into a tropical storm. — ABC News, 8 Sep. 2026 While her music has remained a fixture on country charts, the latest results show listeners are turning back to her catalog across formats and generations following her death. — Anthony Thompson, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026 At times, they were seen swerving around other drivers and driving at speeds up to 95 miles per hour in the northbound lanes before getting onto the westbound I-10, exiting near downtown and then turning back toward Boyle Heights on surface streets. — Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026 Miglietta explained that the jellyfish appears to be dying and sinks to the bottom, then, like a butterfly turning back into a caterpillar, shrinks into a ball. — Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 6 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for turning back
  1. turning away
  2. repelling
  3. repulsing
  4. resisting
  5. beating off
Verb
  • Online video shows Prescott looking back at the man — who was there as a transportation service driver — while still walking, then turning away.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Time will tell whether Gen Z keeps turning away from higher education, but the truth is that the traditionally-aged students who do enroll are also arriving with a wider range of needs than ever before.
    — Ruth Bauer, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of turning away
Verb
  • The running back, 25, had a career night in his first game with the Chiefs, tallying 173 rushing yards on 23 carries, seemingly repelling opponents which resulted in multiple Broncos missed tackles.
    — Anna Lazarus Caplan, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2026
  • This includes rain-repelling treatments like Rain X, adds Musson.
    — Rae Ford, Martha Stewart, 12 Sep. 2026
Definition of repelling
Verb
  • 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
Definition of repulsing
Verb
  • At the Homo Faber craft festival in Venice this past September, one such work—its mouth opening up like a blooming flower—had onlookers resisting the urge to touch it.
    — Hannah Martin, Architectural Digest, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Ukraine's Eastern European neighbors such as Poland and Romania are resisting a push to allow grain to transit through them — even temporarily — due to concerns about a glut destroying demand for their own crops.
    — Jenni Reid, CNBC, 10 Oct. 2026
Definition of resisting
Verb
  • Liverpool are keen for the 21-year-old to gain regular senior experience with Hartberg beating off competition from a number of clubs in Switzerland and France.
    — James Pearce, New York Times, 20 July 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
Definition of beating off

Browse Nearby Words

turning away
turning back
turning color
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Turning back.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/turning%20back. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of outlandish

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
a cup of tea and a golf ball on tee side by side
Quiz: Sounds Like... Choose the word that sounds like it fits the clue...
See All