to turn away from
15
3.7
- phrasal verb
:
dar la espalda a
- People are turning away from the church in droves.
Why do we so often turn away from the other, from ourselves?
- Why do we so often turn away from the other, from ourselves?
- This is what made me turn away from Christian religion.
- What do we lose with each pivotal turn away from these connections?
- You're full of fear and we're turning away from the emotion.
- Meaning where would I turn if I if I turned away from God?
- So I tried to turn away from the tree, but I actually turned into the tree.
- People often turn away from what's possible or or or from actual career choices because they don't know how.
- The husband is turned away from the wife, deep in thought, and the wife says, I wonder what he's thinking about.
- We can't completely turn away from them, at least not if our reason is working, you could say.
- the unwillingness to look at or the willingness to turn away from evidence that you know, would
Examples
-
By the end of the school year, Bella had decided to turn away from the more conventional options available to her.
Academic text (2002) -
But the more she turned away from people, the more scared they were of her.
-
Yet just a few years later, many students turn away from learning.
-
Why do we so often turn away from the other, from ourselves?
-
Now, we totally turned away from the biggest problems here at home.
-
This is what made me turn away from Christian religion.
-
And it does make many people turn away from organized religion.
-
So, yeah, you just have to turn away from those paths that don't lead you anywhere.
-
People often turn away from what's possible or or or from actual career choices because they don't know how.
-
Many students are turning away from traditional education methods that no longer engage them.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To stay away from something or not do it to stop something bad from happening
∞
1.0
Choose not to pay attention to someone or something
839
1.9
Refuse to accept someone or something
698
7.8
Refuse to let someone enter or stay
590
1.6
Keep a distance from people or things you want to avoid
384
2.3
Avoid going near people or places for safety
356
2.8
Move away from someone, or stop taking part in something
332
3.0
To refuse to accept an idea or claim
312
2.9
Refuse an offer, invitation, or request
187
1.6
Stop someone or something from coming near
127
2.4
To stay away from a place, person, or thing
119
3.9
Ignore something or someone on purpose
92
2.9
To avoid dealing with a problem or responsibility
87
4.2
Choose not to do something you want to do
81
5.1
Choose not to be involved with someone or something anymore
77
2.8
Refuse someone entry to a place or group
77
3.8
To start opposing someone you once supported
75
7.0
Keep away from someone or something to show no connection
69
4.7
To ignore something wrong on purpose instead of reporting it
59
3.9
Stop supporting or taking part in a plan because you feel unsure
43
3.2
To stop other people from getting close to you emotionally
41
4.6
Avoid doing something because you feel afraid or unsure
33
8.2
To refuse to accept or be linked to something
32
3.9
To stay away from people or things to avoid close contact
27
3.9
Treat something as unimportant and ignore it
26
4.6
To avoid someone or something and refuse to meet and speak to them on purpose
23
8.9
To avoid something on purpose
13
4.5
Ignore a person or thing because you think they are not important
12
4.4
Not include someone or something in a list
11
3.7
Reject or ignore people and things you no longer want
7
4.1
Refuse to think about something, for example worries or objections
4
5.3
Treat a question or problem as not important
4
6.1
Refuse to listen to someone who gives advice or warnings
2
5.9
Treat something as unimportant and ignore it
2
7.5
To reject someone quickly and rudely
Antonyms
How Rejecting
Surface Forms
Morphology
The literal components 'turn' + 'away' + 'from' convey physical movement in the opposite direction, and this motion metaphorically maps onto avoiding or rejecting someone/something, so the meaning is partially inferable from the parts. However, the shift from physical turning to deliberate social rejection is a metaphorical extension (though cross-linguistically common), so the exact pragmatic sense may not be fully predictable to a B1 learner without some exposure.
Etymology
Turn away from comes from the image of literally turning your face or body away from someone or something so you stop looking. That physical action of moving away on purpose became a way to say 'reject' or 'avoid', so today turn away from means to refuse or not consider someone or something.