TURNS Synonyms: 343 Similar and Opposite Words

turns 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of turn

as in rotates

to move (something) in a curved or circular path on or as if on an axis turned the doorknob as quietly as possible

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Relevance

as in swings

to change the course or direction of (something) the dog turned the stampeding flock of sheep around he turned his cart uphill

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as in deviates

to change one's course or direction we turned left at the light the storm unexpectedly turned south and missed our area

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as in becomes

to eventually have as a state or quality will turn 12 in six months

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as in revolves

to move in circles around an axis or center the wheels turned, but the car was hopelessly stuck and wasn't moving

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as in ponders

to give serious and careful thought to turned the question every which way but could find no answer

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as in depends

to be determined by, based on, or subject (to) what we do next turns on your answer to the following question

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as in spins

to be in a confused state as if from being twirled around all the new information made his head turn

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as in convinces

to cause to have often negative opinions formed without sufficient knowledge he did his best to turn his new friends against his ex-wife

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turns

2 of 2

noun

plural of turn

as in walks

a relaxed journey on foot for exercise or pleasure would you care to take a turn around the garden?

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as in services

an act of kind assistance one good turn deserves another

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as in tendencies

a habitual attraction to some activity or thing an adventurous turn of mind that led him toward more physical activities like biking and skateboarding

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as in bends

something that curves or is curved right after this turn in the road you'll find the antiques shop on the right

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as in bouts

a sudden experiencing of a physical or mental disorder a sudden turn of dizziness that may have been brought on by a change in her medication

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as in acts

a performance regularly presented by an individual or group between the show's two major musical acts, there was a short turn by a juggling troupe

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of turns

Verb

Our fantasy football roundtable series turns its attention to running backs. — Jess Bryant, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2026 India has put $160 million behind a Critical Mineral Recycling Incentive Scheme, and Vietnam’s Decree 05/2025 turns recycled electronics into tradable EPR certificates, making compliance a revenue line rather than a cost. — Rob Kaplan, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026 Chinese authorities have long seen the deaths of popular former leaders as a potential trigger for a surge of public emotion and an occasional catalyst for instability when remembrance of the dead turns into criticism of those in power. — Reuters, NBC news, 18 Aug. 2026 These events occur when extremely hot underground water suddenly turns into steam, expands, and blasts apart the surrounding rock. — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 12 Aug. 2026 In the case of Zach Dell, who turns 30 this month, at least he’s built a home battery and tech business successfully fundraising on a $13 billion valuation. — Jordan Blum, Fortune, 11 Aug. 2026 Novelist, musician, and filmmaker Eliza Barry Callahan turns genre on its ear, with voluptuous nocturnal celluloid cinematography by Alfonso Herrera Salcedo. — Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 11 Aug. 2026 When the light turns green, and the signal tells him to cross. — Michele Gile, CBS News, 11 Aug. 2026 The story turns Hishem, on a customs officer on the Algerian-Tunisian border, who encounters Tesla, a donkey lost in the desert with headphones over his ears, with a bag of cocaine on his back. — Annika Pham, Variety, 4 Aug. 2026

Noun

There have been steep climbs, stretches of extreme heat, missed turns and even warnings to watch out for rattlesnakes. — Marlee Ginter, CBS News, 14 Aug. 2026 June 14 in Coconut Grove after making a left turn from a lane designated for right turns only. — Verónica Egui Brito, Miami Herald, 14 Aug. 2026 That compilation is now up to 810 turns somewhere on the tally. — Hugh McIntyre, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026 Its centerpiece is an 800-foot, three-level electric kart track with hairpin turns, elevation changes and karts that can reach up to 40 mph, depending on the rider. — Gabby Sartori, USA Today, 12 Aug. 2026 George Clooney George Clooney has, for more than two decades, balanced a critically and commercially successful acting career with occasional turns behind the camera. — Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Aug. 2026 With its hairpin turns and madcap improvisations, the odyssey at the book’s center can seem, says our reviewer, like something sketched out by Jules Verne. — Danny Heitman, Christian Science Monitor, 7 Aug. 2026 Their children — Graham (played at 12 by Noah Alexander Sosnowski and later at 17 by Gabriel Barbosa) and Ruth (played at 8 by Riley Chung and 13 by Emma Ho) — are at turns grating, nonsensical, and ill-defined like everything else in the film. — Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 7 Aug. 2026 New assistant coach Alice Chilton is a blatant remodeling of Roy Kent — a brusque ex-soccer player who’s reluctant to engage with Ted’s tomfoolery or personal prodding — but Tanya Reynolds’ performance is equal turns wounded and witty. — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 5 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for turns

Verb

The art space rotates through exhibition themes with submissions open to the public at the beginning of every other month.

— Patrick Connolly, The Orlando Sentinel, 14 Aug. 2026
The roller rotates constantly and gets rinsed with clean water, so the part touching the car always stays clean.

— Maryna Holovnova, New Atlas, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of rotates

Verb

Walsh’s spaceship deviates from many of the vessels seen in Star Wars, as those ships are often dirty and grubby to emphasize their use and wear.

— Rachel Raposas, PEOPLE, 10 Aug. 2026
And the days are coming when AI is meaningfully involved in clinical care, beyond just transcribing our own words, and the follow-up recommendation deviates from the standard of care.

— Frances Mei Hardin, STAT, 7 Aug. 2026

Definition of deviates

Verb

Individual choices look unremarkable, but across enough text, the pattern becomes detectable.

— Anisha Sircar, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2026
The era of ultracheap government borrowing is over, and as servicing public-sector debt becomes ever more expensive, governments will have fewer and fewer resources to respond to macroeconomic shocks.

— Michael B. G. Froman, Foreign Affairs, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of becomes

Verb

Earnings out in August could be the catalyst that decides whether this flag revolves higher in the near term.

— Todd Gordon, CNBC, 29 July 2026
Sharing scenes with the other principal characters, intense or sensitive as the moment requires, Alice is the hub around whom the series revolves and hurtles forward.

— Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 27 July 2026

Definition of revolves

Verb

Vieira ponders the dilemma from his own perspective as a coach, having had spells in charge at New York City, Nice, Crystal Palace, Strasbourg and Genoa.

— Oliver Kay, New York Times, 15 June 2026
As coach John Hynes ponders his Game 1 starter, the recent numbers will show that Wallstedt has allowed a total of four goals in his final two regular-season starts, while veteran Filip Gustavsson has been touched for 10 in the same span.

— Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 15 Apr. 2026

Definition of ponders

Verb

Xi has said fighting against corruption is essential to the party’s survival, and its ability to stay in power depends on strict discipline and political loyalty.

— Sylvie Zhuang, CNN Money, 16 Aug. 2026
The timing of any major new construction projects in the UAE which rely on freight arriving by sea depends on the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

— Caroline Reid, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2026

Definition of depends

Verb

The polar vortex is a wintertime phenomenon, a large area of cold air high up in our atmosphere that normally spins over the North and South poles (as its name suggests).

— Doyle Rice, USA Today, 15 Aug. 2026
In March and April 2025, the researchers pointed IXPE at 1E 1547-5408, a magnetar that spins once every two seconds and is unusual among its kind for steadily emitting radio waves.

— Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 14 Aug. 2026