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Synonyms

take turns

Idioms  

  1. Alternate, as in Since there is only one horse, Beth and Amanda are taking turns riding. This phrase uses turn in the sense of “one of a series of actions done in succession.” [Late 1300s] Also see in turn.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

She and her husband usually take turns pushing their 18-month-old daughter in a tricycle along the pathway and get their steps in.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 6, 2026

The room was so small, they had to take turns if they wanted to lie down, and placed a piece of cardboard over a sewer hole as a makeshift mattress.

From BBC • Mar. 4, 2026

Someone has brought a megaphone; residents take turns leading chants.

From Slate • Feb. 11, 2026

Chelsea Redeker’s 8-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son used to take turns choosing a movie, but arguments would inevitably ensue, and the child who didn’t pick would bounce around or do cartwheels while it was playing.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 7, 2026

But she and Dad have shared custody of me, which means they have to take turns.

From "Blended" by Sharon M. Draper

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.