turn down

British  

verb

1. to reduce (the volume or brightness) of (something)

   turn the radio down

2. to reject or refuse

3. to fold down (a collar, sheets on a bed, etc)

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adjective

1. (prenominal) capable of being or designed to be folded or doubled down

turn down Idioms  

1. Fold or double down, as in They always turn down your bed here , or Turn down your collar . [c. 1600]

2. Invert, as in She turned down her cards , or They turn down the glasses in the cupboard . [Mid-1700s]

3. Reject, fail to accept, as in They turned down his proposal , or Joe was turned down at four schools before he was finally accepted . [Late 1800s]

4. Diminish in volume, brightness, or speed. For example, Please turn down the radio; it's too loud , or They turned down the lights and began to dance . [Second half of 1800s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

turn down

Portland supplemented the federal construction money with local dollars, creating incentives that were hard to turn down.

From Salon ● Jul. 4, 2026

“It’s not like we can call parents for backup care. I had to turn down the job.”

From MarketWatch ● May 13, 2026

Still waiting for Doncic and Reaves to return, the Lakers can’t turn down any advantageous shots, coach JJ Redick said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 25, 2026

That premium would be tough to turn down, although regulatory roadblocks remain.

From Barron's ● Apr. 23, 2026

But I couldn’t turn down the coffee, and knew that even if I tried, Mr. Ray would’ve insisted and probably said something like “Today you become a man,” or some mess like that.

From "The Boy in the Black Suit" by Jason Reynolds

Related Words

• dismiss
• rebuff
• refuse
• spurn