1. Retrace one's course
   "The hikers got into a storm and had to turn back";
   - backtrack, double back
    
2. Go back to a previous state
   "We turned back to the old rules";
   - revert, return, retrovert [rare], regress
    
3. Turn inside out or upside down
   "She turned back the cuffs of her shirt";
   - invert, reverse
    
4. Force to go away; used both with concrete and metaphoric meanings
   "The supermarket had to turn back many disappointed customers";
   - chase away, drive out, drive away, dispel, drive off, run off
    
5. Hold back, as of a danger or an enemy; check the expansion or influence of
   "Turn back the tide of communism";
   - check, arrest, stop, contain, hold back

Derived forms: turns back, turned back, turning back

See also: drive

Type of: alter, change, defend, displace, modify, move, return, reverse, turn