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

The money can’t be accessed until the child turns 18, and only then for specific purposes, such as going to school, opening a business or buying a home. — ABC News, 22 July 2026 Whereas a proper pull-up requires an overhand grip, swapping to an underhand hold turns the exercise into what less strenuous alternative? — Drew Goins, The Atlantic, 21 July 2026 MorningLux on iOS measures ambient lux through the phone sensor and turns morning light into a daily number. — Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 21 July 2026 Pursuing themes explored on the 2025 orchestral suite La Belleza, Pimienta’s latest release, Caribenya, turns the page to brazenly direct songwriting. — Maria Nenet Barrios, Pitchfork, 21 July 2026 The information turns the information into either an all-clear or an actionable diagnosis. — William A. Haseltine, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026 The expansion to 48 teams demonstrated that greater participation generates more opportunities, boosts the development of football, and turns the World Cup into a true global celebration. — Colin Millar, New York Times, 21 July 2026 If the sky turns ominous and thunder can be heard, find a secure place for shelter. — Star-Telegram Weather Bot, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 July 2026 The additional wattage turns the usual 2-D projection into a 3-D production. — Catherine Garcia, TheWeek, 14 July 2026

Noun

That era involved small cliques of devs talking a big game about decentralization (which often provided a pretext for no accountability) while shilling tokens at all turns. — Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, 20 July 2026 For comedian Jeff Arcuri, 2025 brought an uncommon level of emotional upheaval, presenting stunning turns, high highs, and very low lows. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 20 July 2026 The 26-year-old righty has allowed 15 homers this season, permitting at least one in 10 starts, and allowing precisely two home runs in five turns. — Josh Shepardson, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026 Leandro Trossard’s Cruyff turns and dummies did that for Arsenal fans, as did Jesus’ mazy runs that transformed the side before his knee injury playing for Brazil at the 2022 World Cup. — Art De Roché, New York Times, 17 July 2026 Hal Williams, the actor known for his turns as the friendly neighborhood cop Smitty on Sanford and Son and as Marla Gibbs’ patient husband on another popular NBC sitcom, 227, has died. — Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 16 July 2026 Ronstadt’s career, too, was set to take more momentous turns. — Rance Collins, Entertainment Weekly, 15 July 2026 Nick Bennette, who was testing a different type of adaptive bike, got hung up on several tight turns. — Nina Keck, NPR, 9 July 2026 Furthermore, a pilot will use high-G maneuvers like downward vertical turns and spirals, and those maneuvers are strikingly similar to dragonflies engaged in aerial combat. — Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 7 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for turns

Verb

The aircraft, nicknamed Phantom Twist, rotates up to 25 times per second, a rate that outpaces how quickly our visual system can process sharp detail.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 17 July 2026
As the laser passes through the crystal, its polarization rotates.

— Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 16 July 2026

Definition of rotates

Verb

According to the distillery, the whiskey is made using the same distillation and barrel-entry proof as the core bourbon, but then deviates from there.

— Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 7 July 2026
The Washington Post spoke to seven current and former National Park Service staffers who said the policy deviates from the agency’s long-standing approach to release as much information as possible.

— Suzanne Rowan Kelleher, Forbes.com, 25 June 2026

Definition of deviates

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