fall back

Từ điển tiếng Anh - Cambridge Advanced Learners Dictionary

fall back phrasal verb [ fell back fallen back fallen back falls back falling back ]
1. literary to move back suddenly from someone or something, often because you are frightened
• She fell back in horror/disgust.
Thesaurus⁺: ↑Moving in order to avoid contact ↑Digressing and being indirect or evasive
2. If an army falls back, it moves away from an enemy army in order to avoid fighting them
• The infantry fell back in disarray.
Thesaurus⁺: ↑Stopping fighting
Main entry: fall_{phrasal verb}