turnaround

American  

[turn-uh-round] / ˈtɜrn əˌraʊnd /

noun

1. the total time consumed in the round trip of a ship, aircraft, vehicle, etc.

2. turnabout.

3. change of allegiance, opinion, mood, policy, etc.

4. a place or area having sufficient room for a vehicle to turn around.

5. the time required between receiving and finishing or processing work or materials.

6. Commerce.

   1. a reversal, as in business sales, especially from loss to profit.

   2. the time between the making of an investment and receiving a return.

7. Aviation. the elapsed time between an aircraft's arrival at an airfield terminal and its departure.

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turnaround British  

/ ˈtɜːnəˌraʊnd /

noun

1. 1. the act or process in which a ship, aircraft, etc, unloads passengers and freight at the end of a trip and reloads for the next trip

   2. the time taken for this

2. the total time taken by a ship, aircraft, or other vehicle in a round trip

3. a complete reversal of a situation or set of circumstances

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Etymology

Origin of turnaround

First recorded in 1925–30; noun use of verb phrase turn around

Example Sentences

Mangione's lawyers requested the delays because they argued the tight turnaround would make it impossible to prepare adequately for both.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

Do you believe Nike’s turnaround effort, led by Hill, will be successful?

From MarketWatch • Apr. 1, 2026

Long a key growth driver—and Nike’s biggest market outside North America—China has become a thorn in its turnaround efforts as Nike faces fiercer local competition and cooling consumer demand.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026

Applications have been filed with the city of Los Angeles to rebuild only about a third of the destroyed dwellings there, but the turnaround is faster, averaging less than 100 days from application to permit.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

This is a quick turnaround, since I’m pretty sure when Peeta appeared the whole team was concerned about how dangerous he might be, especially to me.

From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins

Related Words

• U-turn
• turnabout