turnover

American  

[turn-oh-ver] / ˈtɜrnˌoʊ vər /

noun

1. an act or result of turning over; upset.

2. change or movement of people, as tenants or customers, in, out, or through a place.

   The restaurant did a lively business and had a rapid turnover.

3. the aggregate of worker replacements in a given period in a given business or industry.

4. the ratio of the labor turnover to the average number of employees in a given period.

5. the total amount of business done in a given time.

6. the rate at which items are sold, especially with reference to the depletion of stock and replacement of inventory.

   Things are slow now, but they expect an increased turnover next month.

7. the number of times that capital is invested and reinvested in a line of merchandise during a specified period of time.

8. the turning over of the capital or stock of goods involved in a particular transaction or course of business.

9. the rate of processing or the amount of material that has undergone a particular process in a given period of time, as in manufacturing.

10. a change from one position, opinion, etc., to another, often to one that is opposed to that previously held.

11. a reorganization of a political organization, business, etc., especially one involving a change or shift of personnel.

12. a baked or deep-fried pastry with a sweet or savory filling in which half the dough is turned over the filling and the edges sealed to form a semicircle or triangle.

13. Basketball, Football. the loss of possession of the ball to the opponents, through misplays or infractions of the rules.

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adjective

1. that is or may be turned over.

2. having a part that turns over, as a collar.

Etymology

Origin of turnover

First recorded in 1605–15; noun use of verb phrase turn over

Explanation

When workers leave their jobs and are replaced by other workers, that's turnover. A totally different kind of turnover is a delicious baked good with a sweet filling. If an economist is talking about turnover, she probably means the rate at which a business loses employees, or how many jobs they have to fill over the course of a year. If that same economist is placing an order at a bakery, she may instead mean the flaky, triangle-shaped pastry that's wrapped around a fruit filling. In the work world, having a lot of turnover is a negative thing. In the pastry world, a high rate of turnovers doesn't sound bad at all.

Example Sentences

“If the adviser is bending because they need to increase the number of clients at all costs, or there’s upheaval or maybe high turnover at their firm, that’s not good,” Krueger said.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026

I was embarrassed at having overlooked the multiple red flags Webb identified, from related-party transactions to high auditor turnover.

From Barron's • Apr. 7, 2026

Internal documents say Morar's turnover is projected to grow from £29m in 2023 to reach £122.5m by 2030.

From BBC • Apr. 5, 2026

U.S. job openings slipped in February and hiring fell to its lowest level since April 2020, the Labor Department’s monthly job openings and labor turnover survey showed.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026

“Jude, I know you’re furious with me. It doesn’t mean you can’t have a turnover for breakfast.”

From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson

Related Words

• coup
• innovation
• insurgency
• mutiny
• rebellion
• revolt
• shift
• strike
• transformation
• turmoil
• unrest
• upheaval
• uprising
• violence