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

Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach take turns transforming into floating marketplaces — docks converted to catwalks, hulls polished to reflective arrogance, sales reps who can quote fuel burn like yacht owners care about costs. —Eric Barton, Sun Sentinel, 4 Jan. 2026

The teen-agers greeted her parents one by one; a Spotify playlist featuring Travis Scott and Rauw Alejandro played while the guests took turns on the mechanical bull. —Jordan Salama, New Yorker, 30 Dec. 2025

Additional videos and photos showed her children taking turns petting Laila and holding her. —Kayla Grant, PEOPLE, 30 Dec. 2025

Both players took turns rushing from the inside. —Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 30 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1613, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for take turns

• holofernes
• overturns
• subalterns
• adjourns
• concerns
• discerns
• downturns
• internes
• nocturnes
• returns
• sideburns
• churns