drive back

verb

To force someone or something to retreat or move away; repel.

Similar
repelrepulsefight offrebuff
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

verbdrive back (third-person singular simple present drives back, present participle driving back, simple past drove back, past participle driven back)

present singular third person drives back · participle present driving back · past drove back · participle past driven back

  1. idiomatictransitiveTo force someone or something to retreat or move away; repel.
  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see drive, back.

Synonyms & antonyms

verbforce or drive back

Similar
repelrepulsefight offrebuff
Broader
fightopposefight back
Also see
fight offrebuffrepelrepulse

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Cite this entry
APA

drive back. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/drive%20back

MLA

“drive back.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/drive%20back. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “drive back,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/drive%20back.

Source: drive back on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.