Phrasal verbs with "back"

To reply rudely or cheekily to someone in authority, especially a parent or teacher.

To invite someone to come back to your home or a place after they have left, or to invite someone in return after they have invited you.

To force someone or something to retreat by fighting or resisting strongly.

To retaliate sharply against criticism or an attack; or to stop yourself from saying or showing something.

To recover quickly and successfully after a difficult period or setback.

to force back, check, or reduce something, especially growth or movement

to return with someone or something, make something exist again, or make someone remember

To sweep hair backwards away from the face; or (baseball) to throw a pitch that forces a batter to move away from the plate.

To purchase something that was previously sold or given away; especially when a company repurchases its own shares.

To phone someone again, especially in return for a call they made to you, or to ask someone to return to a place.

To direct one's thoughts deliberately back to a past time or event.

To suppress or force back a strong emotion, especially tears, sobs, or anger.

To return to a topic, person, or location that was left earlier in order to revisit it

To respond to criticism or an insult with a sharp, confident, and often witty comeback

To recover something that was lost, especially money or an advantage, with great effort.

to return to a place, situation, or earlier state

Not a widely established standard phrasal verb; may appear in niche culinary or dialectal contexts meaning to reheat or cook again.

To reduce the amount, size, or extent of something, especially spending or activity; also to prune a plant.

To have existed since a particular time in the past; to originate from a specific historical period.

To reduce the intensity, extent, or level of something; to moderate.

Of a plant: to have its stems and leaves die off while the roots remain alive, typically in winter.

To turn around and return along the same route you just came from.

To move backward, especially suddenly from surprise or fear, or to pull something open or aside.

To return somewhere by driving, or to force a person or group to retreat.

To move to a position further behind others in a group, race, or ranking, either deliberately or because of slower progress.

To move backward or retreat, especially under pressure.

To return to a previous habit, pattern, or state, usually an unwanted one.

To use a reserve resource, skill, or option when other choices are unavailable.

A formal variant of 'fall back on'; to use a reserve resource when other options are exhausted.

To return information, results, or reactions to the original source, or to cause a signal to loop back into a system.

To defend yourself by attacking or opposing someone who has attacked you, or to struggle to suppress an emotion.

For the mind or a narrative to suddenly return to an earlier time or memory.

To return to a place, or to recover something that was taken or lost.

To take revenge on someone who has harmed or wronged you.

To contact someone again later, or to return to a subject that was interrupted or postponed.

To return something to the person it belongs to, or to contribute to a community as a way of expressing gratitude.

To return to a place, person, or state; or to date from a period in the past.

To fail to honour a promise, agreement, or decision that was previously made.

To return to a place, person, activity, or topic.

To return something to the person it belongs to or came from.

To hesitate or be reluctant to move forward or participate, often due to shyness or uncertainty.

To refer back to something from the past, or to recall and resemble an earlier time or style.

A variant of 'hark back': to refer to or evoke something from the past.

To evoke, refer to, or be reminiscent of something from the past.

To respond to an attack or criticism with an equally strong counter-attack or response.

To restrain someone or something, to prevent progress, or to stop oneself from expressing feelings or information.

To deliberately refrain from doing, giving, or using something to the full extent.

To respond to someone who has contacted or called out to you

To respond or reply to someone who called out to you or contacted you

To return to a previous position, level, or state very gradually and slowly.

To prevent someone or something from moving forward, or to withhold information, money, or emotions.

To relax completely and do nothing; to receive or pay an illegal payment as a bribe; or to recoil from a force.

To drink something quickly, to reject or discourage someone, or to cost a surprising amount of money.

To retaliate sharply against criticism, an attack, or negative treatment.

To recline or lean backwards into a resting position; or to relax and not apply effort.

To recline into a relaxed, horizontal or near-horizontal position by leaning backwards.

To think about or consider the past, or to literally turn and look behind you.

To return to a previous position or place of residence; to postpone something to a later time; or to move in a backward direction.

to return money that you owe, or to hurt someone in revenge

to fasten something back with a peg or clip

to fasten something back with a pin so it stays away from the face or from where it hangs

To play a recorded sound or video in order to hear or watch it again.

To reinvest profits or money back into the same business or activity that generated them.

American English: to reinvest profits or earnings back into the same business.

to move back, retreat, or reduce involvement

To resist or oppose pressure, a proposal, or a policy; also to physically move something backward or to delay something.

To return something to its original place, or to reschedule something to a later time.

To reply sharply or quickly; a rare or non-standard phrasal verb.

Not a widely established standard phrasal verb; possibly a regional or rare variant meaning to pull or scrape back something painfully.

To move suddenly and sharply backward, often in surprise, fear, or disgust; used of people, animals, and vehicles.

to return and give information about what you found or what happened

To return to a previous state, habit, or system.

To return a phone call to someone who called earlier.

To make a strong and impressive comeback after being behind or in difficulty; to respond with great power after a setback.

To reverse or reduce something, especially prices, laws, or policies, to a previous level.

To reverse direction by rowing, or figuratively to withdraw or retreat from a previously stated position or commitment.

to go back quickly to a place

To set aside or keep a portion of something for future use.

To reduce the size, scope, or extent of something, often temporarily.

To reattach or replace something by screwing it back into its original position.

To return something to where it came from, or to order someone to go back to where they were.

To delay progress or development, or to cost someone a specified amount of money.

To fire back at an attacker, or to reply quickly and sharply

To move backward involuntarily out of fear, shock, or reluctance; to hesitate or avoid doing something.

to relax, or to avoid taking action while something happens

To pull back the skin or outer layer of something to expose what is underneath.

To drink an alcoholic shot quickly and forcefully; or to forcefully return something to a previous position.

To smooth hair backward away from the face, usually with a gel, oil, or wet hands to create a flat, shiny look.

To return to a previous place, state, or habit quietly or without being noticed, often undesirably.

To return suddenly and sharply to a previous position or state; or to reply sharply to someone.

To return quickly to an original position or shape due to elasticity; or to recover quickly from difficulty

To move away from something or to distance oneself mentally in order to get a better view or perspective.

To begin the return journey to a place, or to recoil suddenly in surprise or fear.

To resume an activity, job, or routine after a break or interruption

To resume working on a specific project, task, or habit after a pause

To remain at a distance from something or someone; to not move forward

To move physically backwards, or to pause and reconsider a situation from a wider perspective.

To attack or respond with force after being attacked, criticized, or challenged.

To move back to a previous position in an arc, or to return to a previous state, especially in politics or public opinion.

To return something to where it came from; to retract a statement; or to cause someone to remember a past time

To respond rudely or disrespectfully to someone in authority, such as a parent or teacher.

To direct your thoughts to something that happened in the past; to recall or reminisce.

To return something by throwing it; to cause someone to remember or be reminded of the past; or to reveal a genetic trait from an earlier an

To fasten or secure something (especially hair or curtains) away from the front using a band, ribbon, or tie.

To lean, tilt, or pour something in a backward direction.

To stop going forward and return in the direction you came from; to prevent someone from proceeding.

To retract, reverse, or distance oneself from a previously stated position, claim, or commitment, often gradually or diplomatically.

To regain something or someone that was previously lost.

To move a tape, clock, or similar mechanism backwards; also figuratively, to return to an earlier time or state.

To eat something very quickly and greedily.

To reason, calculate, or plan by starting from a known end point and moving back towards the beginning.

To manoeuvre or nudge something back into position through persistent, patient effort; or to keep returning to a worry in one's mind.