Phrasal verbs

turn …

The full list of 20 words in this set. Open any word for its pronunciation, collocations, a band 8 sentence and the mistakes Vietnamese learners make.

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20 words

  1. 1

    turn onphrasal verb/tɜːn ɒn/

    to start a device working; to cause someone to feel interest or excitement

    Can you turn on the heater?

  2. 2

    turn aroundphrasal verb/tɜːn əˈraʊnd/

    to change something so that it improves; to change direction; to turn one's body to face the opposite way

    The new strategy helped turn the company around within a year.

  3. 3

    turn tophrasal verb/tɜːn tuː/

    to ask someone for help or advice; to go to a particular page or topic

    When she had trouble, she always turned to her older sister.

  4. 4

    turn backphrasal verb/tɜːn bæk/

    to return to a previous place or to make someone return; to reverse direction

    The climbers had to turn back because of bad weather.

  5. 5

    turn overphrasal verb/tɜːn ˈəʊvə/

    to flip something so the other side is up; to hand control or responsibility to someone

    Please turn over the page to continue reading.

  6. 6

    turn inphrasal verb/tɜːn ɪn/

    to hand something to someone in authority (submit); to surrender oneself to the police; informal: to go to bed

    Please turn in your assignment by Friday.

  7. 7

    turn one's back onphrasal verb/tɜːn wʌnz bæk ɒn/

    to stop supporting someone or to deliberately ignore someone who needs help

    The company turned its back on the local community after the merger.

  8. 8

    turn the tablesphrasal verb/tɜːn ðə ˈteɪbəlz/

    reverse a situation so that you gain an advantage instead of the other person

    She managed to turn the tables on her critics by presenting new evidence.

  9. 9

    turn a cornerphrasal verb/tɜːn ə ˈkɔːnə/

    start to improve after a difficult period

    After months of falling sales, the business finally turned a corner.

  10. 10

    turn palephrasal verb/tɜːn peɪl/

    to become pale suddenly because of shock, fear or illness

    When the teacher mentioned the exam, several students turned pale.

  11. 11

    turn againstphrasal verb/tɜːn əˈɡɛnst/

    to change from supporting someone/something to opposing them

    After the oil spill, many locals turned against the corporation.

  12. 12

    turn over a new leafphrasal verb / idiom/tɜːn ˈəʊvə(r) ə ˈnjuː liːf/

    to make a fresh start and behave better than before

    After the scandal he promised to turn over a new leaf and focus on community service.

  13. 13

    turn on its headphrasal verb (idiom)/tɜːn ɒn ɪts hed/

    to completely change or reverse the usual way of thinking about something

    The new study turns the conventional theory on its head.

  14. 14

    turn a profitphrasal verb/tɜːn ə ˈprɒfɪt/

    to make a financial profit

    The small café finally turned a profit after two years in business.

  15. 15

    turn one's stomachphrasal verb/tɜːn wʌnz ˈstʌmək/

    to make someone feel disgusted or sick

    The graphic images in the article turned my stomach.

  16. 16

    turn the tideidiom (phrasal)/tɜːn ðə taɪd/

    to change a situation so that you have an advantage after previously being disadvantaged

    The new evidence helped turn the tide in the defence's favour.

  17. 17

    turn a deaf ear tophrasal verb / idiom/tɜːn ə ˈdef ɪə tuː/

    to deliberately ignore what someone says or refuses to listen to advice/requests

    Despite repeated warnings, the company turned a deaf ear to safety concerns.

  18. 18

    turn the pagephrasal verb / idiom/tɜːn ðə peɪdʒ/

    to move on from a past event and start a new chapter in life or work

    After the scandal, the company tried to turn the page and rebuild its reputation.

  19. 19

    turn the clock backphrasal verb / idiom/tɜːn ðə klɒk bæk/

    to try to return to an earlier time or situation; to reverse recent changes

    Policy makers cannot simply turn the clock back to the pre‑industrial era.

  20. 20

    turn a blind eye toidiom (phrasal)/tɜːn ə blaɪnd aɪ tə/

    to deliberately ignore something bad or illegal

    Officials often turn a blind eye to minor breaches of the law.

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