turn back

retrace one''s course

• “The hikers got into a storm and had to turn back”

go back to a previous state

• “We reverted to the old rules”

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”

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”