Synonyms for turn back

Synonyms for (verb) turn back

Synonyms: invert, turn back, reverse

Definition: turn inside out or upside down

Similar words: alter, change, modify

Definition: cause to change; make different; cause a transformation

Usage: The advent of the automobile may have altered the growth pattern of the city; The discussion has changed my thinking about the issue


Synonyms: retrovert, return, revert, regress, turn back

Definition: go back to a previous state

Usage: We reverted to the old rules

Similar words: turn, change by reversal, reverse

Definition: change to the contrary

Usage: The trend was reversed; the tides turned against him; public opinion turned when it was revealed that the president had an affair with a White House intern


Synonyms: contain, hold back, arrest, check, stop, turn back

Definition: hold back, as of a danger or an enemy; check the expansion or influence of

Usage: Arrest the downward trend; Check the growth of communism in South East Asia; Contain the rebel movement; Turn back the tide of communism

Similar words: defend

Definition: be on the defensive; act against an attack


Synonyms: turn back, chase away, run off, drive away, drive off, drive out, dispel

Definition: force to go away; used both with concrete and metaphoric meanings

Usage: Drive away potential burglars; drive away bad thoughts; dispel doubts; The supermarket had to turn back many disappointed customers

Similar words: displace, move

Definition: cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense

Usage: Move those boxes into the corner, please; I'm moving my money to another bank; The director moved more responsibilities onto his new assistant


Synonyms: turn back, backtrack, double back

Definition: retrace one's course

Usage: The hikers got into a storm and had to turn back

Similar words: return

Definition: go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before

Usage: return to your native land; the professor returned to his teaching position after serving as Dean


Visual thesaurus for turn back