Meaning & use
send back
Last updated
Meanings
verbtransitive
To return something to the place or person it came from, often by mail.
Grammar: Takes an object, which can go between the two words or after them: send it back / send back the form.
Patterns
- send something back
- send back something
- send something back to someone
The shoes were too small, so I sent them back.
Please send back the signed contract by Friday.
She sent the package back to the seller.
verbtransitive
To ask someone to leave a place and go home or to where they came from.
Grammar: Takes a person as object, usually placed between the words: send someone back.
Patterns
- send someone back
- send someone back to a place
The guard sent the visitors back to the entrance.
After the storm, the airline sent passengers back to the terminal.
verbtransitive
To make food or drink in a restaurant go back to the kitchen because it is not right.
Grammar: Common in restaurants; the object usually goes between the words: send the soup back.
Patterns
- send something back
- send a dish back
The steak was cold, so we sent it back.
He never sends food back, even when it is undercooked.
Word forms
| third person singular | sends back |
|---|---|
| past tense | sent back |
| past participle | sent back |
| -ing form | sending back |
Common combinations
- send it back
- If the shirt does not fit, just send it back.
- send back the form
- Send back the form in the envelope provided.
- send someone back home
- The team was sent back home after the match was canceled.
- send a dish back
- We had to send the dish back because it was salty.
- send something back for a refund
- I sent the headphones back for a refund.
Synonyms and how they differ
- return
- Return is more formal and often used in business writing: return the item within 30 days.
- mail back
- Mail back is narrower and means returning something specifically by post.
- reject
- Reject means refusing to accept something, which may or may not involve physically sending it back.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: send back or send off?
send back vs send off
Send off often means mailing something (send off an application) or ordering a player off the field; send back always means returning it.
Practice
The jacket did not fit, so I ___ to the online store.
Choose one answer.
With a pronoun object, the pronoun must go between send and back: sent it back. 'Sent back it' is wrong word order, and 'sent back' alone has no object.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “send back”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.