turnover

American  

[turn-oh-ver] / ˈtɜrnˌoʊ vər /

noun

turnovers plural

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.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• turnovers
  plural

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

See Examples For:

turnover turnovers

The former securities regulator and federal prosecutor succeeds Tulsi Gabbard, who resigned last month, and inherits an 18-agency intelligence community shaken by leadership turnover and staff cuts.

From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026

“My buddy looks at me and I’m like, ‘Dude, the turnover in public schools is crazy,’” Puder said.

From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026

A second EU official said the fines were worth 0.22 percent of Google's turnover.

From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026

Meanwhile, prepaid trends were mixed as gross additions rose sharply, but net adds fell and churn jumped to 5.01%, which points to higher turnover in lower-value segments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

Population turnover was small, and people clung through habit to the same physicians they had been doing business with for years.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller

The 6-foot-6, 180-pound guard averaged 17.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.8 turnovers as a freshman.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 21, 2026

Lens made 426 high turnovers during the 2025-26 season, frequently turning those moments into chances - producing 69 shots and seven goals.

From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2026

The Spurs connected on just four of 20 shots in the third and coughed up five turnovers after having just two in the first half.

From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026

Last week, I found a bag of crisp apples destined for turnovers.

From Salon ● May 22, 2026

I try to get the ball to Hakim next, but I make another bad pass and suddenly I have two turnovers and four missed shots in a row.

From "Boy21" by Matthew Quick

Related Words

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