Adjacent Words

turn back definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: retrace one's course; "The hikers got into a storm and had to turn back" [syn: backtrack, turn back, double back]
2: go back to a previous state; "We reverted to the old rules" [syn: revert, return, retrovert, regress, turn back]
3: force to go away; used both with concrete and metaphoric meanings; "Drive away potential burglars"; "drive away bad thoughts"; "dispel doubts"; "The supermarket had to turn back many disappointed customers" [syn: chase away, drive out, turn back, drive away, dispel, drive off, run off]
4: hold back, as of a danger or an enemy; check the expansion or influence of; "Arrest the downward trend"; "Check the growth of communism in South East Asia"; "Contain the rebel movement"; "Turn back the tide of communism" [syn: check, turn back, arrest, stop, contain, hold back]
5: turn inside out or upside down [syn: turn back, invert, reverse]

Merriam Webster's

verb Date: 15th century intransitive verb 1. a. to go in the reverse direction b. to stop going forward 2. to refer to an earlier time or place transitive verb 1. to drive back or away 2. to stop the advance of 3. to fold back 4. give back, return

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

1. If you turn back or if someone turns you back when you are going somewhere, you change direction and go towards where you started from. She turned back towards the crossroads... They were very nearly forced to turn back... Police attempted to turn back protesters marching towards the offices of President Ershad. PHRASAL VERB: V P prep/adv, V P, V P n (not pron), also V n P 2. If you cannot turn back, you cannot change your plans and decide not to do something, because the action you have already taken makes it impossible. The administration has now endorsed the bill and can't turn back. PHRASAL VERB: with brd-neg, V P

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

Turn round, go back, return.

Moby Thesaurus

about ship, assimilate to, avert, back and fill, bear away, bear off, bear to starboard, beat, beat about, beat back, become, box off, break, break back, bring about, bring round, bring to, brush off, cant, cant round, cast, cast about, change, change back, change course, change into, change over, change the heading, chase, chase away, chase off, come about, come again, come back, come home, come up again, convert, cry back, cut, dismiss, do a flip-flop, do an about-face, do over, double, double a point, double back, draw aside, drive away, drive back, ease off, echo, edge off, fend off, fetch about, flip-flop, fly off, gee, glance, glance off, go about, go back, go home, go off, gybe, hark back, haw, head off, heave round, hold off, jib, jibe, jibe all standing, keep coming, keep off, make, make over, make way for, miss stays, move aside, naturalize, pack off, ply, push back, put about, put back, react, reappear, rebuff, reconvert, recur, reduce to, refuse, render, reoccur, repeat, repel, repulse, resolve into, resound, resume, return, reverberate, reverse, revert, round a point, send away, send off, send packing, sheer, sheer off, shift, shove aside, shunt, shy, shy off, side, sidestep, sidetrack, sidle, slew, snub, spurn, steer clear of, step aside, swerve, swing round, swing the stern, switch, switch over, tack, throw about, thrust back, transform, turn, turn about, turn around, turn aside, turn away, turn into, veer, veer off, ward off, wear, wear ship, wind, yaw