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turn - thesaurus entry

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90% of the time, speakers of English use just 7,500 words in speech and writing. These words appear in red, and are graded with stars. One-star words are frequent, two-star words are more frequent, and three-star words are the most frequent.

verb

1
to change the position of your body or head so that you are facing in a different direction
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
To change your position: balance, bend, bestride, bow, burrow, cower, crane, crook, crouch, double over... more
1. a.
  to change the position of something so that it is pointing in a different direction
  *Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
  To change position: turn, spin, overturn, reverse, roll, adjust, angle, tilt, tip up, turn something inside out... more
2
to change the direction in which you are moving or travelling
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
To move, or to move something away or back: back away, draw back, part, pull away, back, retreat, backtrack, stand aside, scatter, shrink... more
1. a.
  to make something change the direction in which it is moving
  *Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
  To move, or to move something away or back: back away, draw back, part, pull away, back, retreat, backtrack, stand aside, scatter, shrink... more
2. b.
  if a road or river turns, it bends and goes in a different direction
  *Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
  What roads, paths and areas of land do: ascend, bend, bifurcate, branch off, carry, connect, diverge, divide, end, extend... more
3. c.
  if the tide turns, it moves in the opposite direction
  *Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
  What liquids can do: break, burst, cast up, catch, channel, come in, course, crest, dash, deepen... more
3
to make a circular movement
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
To move in circles or twists: spin, revolve, whirl, rotate, swirl, twirl, circle, turn, swing... more
1. a.
  to make something move in a circle
  *Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
  To move in circles or twists: spin, revolve, whirl, rotate, swirl, twirl, circle, turn, swing... more
4
if you turn the page of a book or magazine, you move it in order to read a different page
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
To read something quickly: glance, skim, flick through, look at, run down, browse, look through, leaf through, run/cast your eye(s) over something, run through... more
5
to change and do or become something else
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
To become different: change, turn into, change into, convert, go over to, become, alter, diversify, tend, develop... more
1. a.
  to change and become another colour
  *Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
  To become a different colour: blacken, bleach, bleed, brighten, change, deepen, fade, grey, lighten, mellow... more
6
to become a particular age or a particular time
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
Linking verbs: appear, be, become, come over, feel, form, get, go, grow, look... more
7
if your stomach turns, or if something turns your stomach, you feel as if food in your stomach is going to come out through your mouth
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
Feeling sick and vomiting: airsick, barf, bilious, bloated, bring up, carsick, chuck up, chunder, cloy, come up... more
8
mainly journalism if someone turns a game or a fight, or if it turns, it starts to develop in a different way
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
To become different: change, turn into, change into, convert, go over to, become, alter, diversify, tend, develop... more
9
if milk turns, it becomes sour
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
To decay, or to rot: biodegrade, curdle, decay, decompose, fester, go off, perish, putrefy, rot, sour... more
10
to give a particular shape to a piece of wood or metal using a lathe
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
To use a tool: card, chase, chip away, chisel, chop, crimp, cut, drill, file, flail... more

phrases

not know where/which way to turn
to not know what to do in a difficult situation
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
To be in, or to get into a difficult situation: suffer, undergo, come under, endure, incur, go through, be in dire/desperate straits, be (caught/stuck) between a rock and a hard place, be in the grip of something, not know where/which way to turn... more
turn your back on
1. 1
  to turn your body so that your back is pointing towards someone or something
  *Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
  To change your position: balance, bend, bestride, bow, burrow, cower, crane, crook, crouch, double over... more
2. 2
  to refuse to accept someone or something that you have previously accepted
  *Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
  To refuse to think about, believe or accept something: turn down, ignore, dismiss, shoot down, push aside, spurn, not hear of it, deceive yourself, close your mind to something, put your foot down... more
turn someone’s head
to make someone feel more important, intelligent etc than they really are
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
To have an effect on someone's emotions or attitudes: influence, decide, lead to, grip, stir, skew, give, catch, pack a punch, put off... more
turn heads
to attract a lot of attention
*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*
To make someone feel excited, enthusiastic or impressed: inspire, attract, interest, motivate, excite, intrigue, enthuse, dazzle, fire someone with enthusiasm, capture someone’s interest/imagination/attention... more

phrasal verbs

These are synonyms and/or related words for turn in the British English Thesaurus. View synonyms and/or related words for turn in the American English Thesaurus.

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chillax

to rest and relax, often by taking time away from work to do things you enjoy

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dray

a type of cart pulled by a horse and used in the past for carrying barrels of beer

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turn - thesaurus entry

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phrases

not know where/which way to turn

*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*

turn your back on

*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*

*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*

turn someone’s head

*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*

turn heads

*Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn*

phrasal verbs

chillax

Word of the Day

dray

gender-neutral

Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn

Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn

Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn

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Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn

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Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn

Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn

Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn

Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn

Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn

Synonyms or related words for this sense of turn