1
: turned up
a turnup nose
2
: made or fitted to be turned up
a turnup collar
turned up; turning up; turns up
2
: to raise or increase by or as if by turning a control
turn up the volume on the radio
3
British
a
: to look up (a word, a fact, etc.) in a book
b
: to refer to or consult (a book)
4
: to turn (a card) face upward
1
: to appear or come to light unexpectedly or after being lost
new evidence has turned up
2
a(1)
: to turn out to be
He turned up missing at roll call.
(2)
: appear sense 4
her name is always turning up in the newspapers
b
: to arrive or show up at an appointed or expected time or place
turned up half an hour late
3
: to happen or occur unexpectedly
something always turned up to prevent their meeting
4
of a ship
: tack sense 1b
see also turn up one's nose
Examples of turnup in a Sentence
Verb
my missing car keys turned up just in time
when do you think our guests will turn up?
Recent Examples on the Web
Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 17 Dec. 2025
The search of the backpack turned up a pistol, silencer, and notebook.
—Jesse Zanger, CBS News, 16 Dec. 2025
In April, hundreds of people turned up at a public hearing regarding xAI’s air permit for permanent turbines and shared their fears.
—Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 16 Dec. 2025
Still, Matney is hopeful that something else might yet turn up.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 16 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for turnup
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Verb
In last year’s Cut, Emily Gould interviewed partygoers from previous epochs and turned up all sorts of outrageous anecdotes.
—Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 17 Dec. 2025
The search of the backpack turned up a pistol, silencer, and notebook.
—Jesse Zanger, CBS News, 16 Dec. 2025
In April, hundreds of people turned up at a public hearing regarding xAI’s air permit for permanent turbines and shared their fears.
—Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 16 Dec. 2025
Still, Matney is hopeful that something else might yet turn up.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 16 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for turnup
Cite this Entry
“Turnup.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/turnup. Accessed 18 Dec. 2025.
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