Study phrasal verb TURN:
Turn | Meaning + Use | Examples |
turn away smth |
refuse admittance to |
The man at the door turned away anybody lacking formal appointments and proper credentials. Even at my own college they repeatedly turned me away. |
turn down smth/smb |
refuse, reject an offer, application, applicant |
Martin Foleys has never spoken in public about the case and has turned down our numerous requests for an interview. A bank employee loudly turned down her application to open an account. One of the residents had applied for the job but was turned down. |
turn into smth/smb |
convert into something or somebody |
People who are sleep deprived often don't even know they've turned into zombies. The mansion the British owners built for themselves has been turned into a luxury hotel. |
turn on smb |
attack suddenly (the attacker is normally a friend or a hitherto friendly animal), criticize |
The lion had not turned on the father until the man attacked. I turned on him like a kid in a schoolyard fight. |
turn on/off smth |
switch on/off (lights, gas, fires, radios etc.) |
He opened the shower door and turned on the water. She drew the blinds and turned on the light. Another family policy: The TV must be turned off before going to bed. No one was in the room, but the TV was on with the sound turned off. |
turn up/down smth |
increase/decrease the pressure, force, volume (of gas or oil, lights, fires, or of radios) |
I settled back in an armchair and watched as Mrs. Jones turned up the gas lights and lit the fire. She didn't bother to turn down the radio when she answered the phone. |
turn out smth |
(a) produce, manufacture |
The plant is expected to turn out about 75 million gallons of fuel a year. Last year, the state turned out more than 166 million bushels of long-grain rice - more than any other state. |
turn smb out |
(b) evict someone from their house/flat/room |
It must have been a blow when her landlord turned her out and opened his own restaurant there. When I grew older, the old woman turned me out of the house. |
turn out smth |
(c) turn out one's pockets/handbags/drawers etc. = empty them, usually looking for something |
Mike felt inside his coat and turned out his pockets. All he found was a handful of coins. Oscar turned out his bag, which did have a book inside. |
turn out |
(a) assemble, appear, attend, come out into the street (usually in order to welcome somebody) |
In spite of the rain, the whole town turned out to cheer when the last U.S. president came to visit the car factory. More city residents turned out in recent years to protest a proposed Little League complex. |
turn out |
(b) develop, result |
No pictures, please. They always turn out looking really bad. I'll just be following procedures. I have no idea how it will turn out. Sometimes things don't turn out the way you want them. |
turn out |
(c) be revealed. Notice the two possible constructions, it turned out that... and turned out to be... Note the difference between turn out and come out. With turn out the fact revealed is always mentioned and there is no implication that the facts are discreditable. With come out we are told only that certain facts (usually discreditable) are revealed; we are not told what these facts are. |
When I told him that I was going to Paris, it turned out that he was too. He was having a lot of trouble in school, and it turned out that one reason was that his handwriting was terrible. What might have been an amazing experience turned out to be a disaster. This actually has turned out to be the most important day of my life so far. |
turn over smth |
turn something so that the side previously underneath is exposed |
I feel as if a stone had been turned over for my inspection of the life under it. Turn over a new leaf. (begin again, meaning to do better) |
turn over |
(a) turn upside down, upset, capsize (used of vehicles or boats) |
Bake potatoes for 20 minutes, then turn over with a wide spatula. He sailed right off and the car turned over and he didn't have his belt fastened. Coast Guard officials believe the boat was turned over by stormy weather conditions early today. |
turn over |
(b) (of people) change position so as to lie on the other side |
Inside, grandpa turned over in his sleep and moaned slightly. Larry's bed creaked as he turned over. |
turn up |
arrive, appear (usually from the point of view of someone waiting or searching) |
Children who turned up to school were told to go home because of the fire smoke in the classrooms. Tell me, Daniel, how was it that your bag turned up in that room? |
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