Approach and Back away

Opposite meaning terms

Approach verb - To come near or nearer.

Usage example: the parade's approaching! I can hear the band playing!

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Back away is an antonym for approach.

Back away verb - To move back or away (as from something difficult, dangerous, or disagreeable).

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Approach is an antonym for back away.

So when he starts to approach a group of Oishi's men, they understandably back away from him.

Source: Film / 47 Ronin
This fact with the torch is vital to your defeat of Celosia: if you approach it while using the torch it'll back away from you, and this can be used to actually drive it off a ledge.

Source: Kill It With Fire / Video Games

Cite this Source

Back away and Approach. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/approach/back_away

Approach & Back away. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/approach/back_away>.

Back away or Approach. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/approach/back_away.

Google Ngram Viewer shows how "approach" and "back away" have occurred on timeline