take turns

idiomatic phrase

variants also British take it in turns

: to do something one after another in regular succession in order to share the responsibility or opportunity of doing it : alternate

We take turns washing the dishes.

Almost immediately, Rick and Diane begin videotaping their classroom lessons, letting their students take turns with the cameras.

—Ann Bradley

Several youths were around the phone, taking it in turns to gossip and joke with the operator.

—Christopher Isherwood

Examples of take turns in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Ariana Grande’s Celine Dion Romanticizes UFC Fighting With Theme Song Fineman and Grande take turns impersonating Coolidge’s unique vocal modulation. —Armando Tinoco, Deadline, 12 Oct. 2024

At the end of that song, the brothers take turns singing the hook. —Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 11 Oct. 2024

Its nozzles take turns throughout the printing process, each one depositing a different type of polymer to create a different part of the item. —Ben Coxworth, New Atlas, 11 Oct. 2024

After immediately hitting it off and exchanging numbers that night, the two returned home and decided two months later to attempt a long-distance relationship, taking turns visiting each other over the next nearly three years. —Skyler Caruso, People.com, 30 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1613, in the meaning defined above