take turns

idiomatic phrase

variants also British take it in turns

: to do something one after another in regular succession in order to share the responsibility or opportunity of doing it : alternate

We take turns washing the dishes.

Almost immediately, Rick and Diane begin videotaping their classroom lessons, letting their students take turns with the cameras.

—Ann Bradley

Several youths were around the phone, taking it in turns to gossip and joke with the operator.

—Christopher Isherwood

Examples of take turns in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Nilay, David, and Wall Street Journal columnist (and forever friend of The Verge) Joanna Stern take turns offering their predictions for the year to come. —David Pierce, The Verge, 8 Dec. 2024

Several young women, some toting infants on their hips, take turns responding. —Kang-Chun Cheng, The Christian Science Monitor, 5 Dec. 2024

The lone score comes when Tar Heels forward Cindy Parlow accidentally heads a ball into her own net. 2002 — Oakland’s Tim Brown and Jerry Rice take turns rewriting the NFL record book in a 26-20 win over the New York Jets. —Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 2 Dec. 2024

Some games are what’s known as home-and-home series—teams take turns playing home and away, most often without money exchanging hands. —Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1613, in the meaning defined above