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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
But instead of saying this is a small price to pay for cleaner air, the state’s most powerful politicians take turns denouncing Big Oil’s greed. U T Editorial Board, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Feb. 2025 Residents took turns asking questions, trying to grasp the scale of the damage. David Segal, New York Times, 16 Feb. 2025 Not only that, the chick's father is in the picture too, as albatross across species takes turns caring for their chick while the other hunts and feeds to restore energy, according to the Pacific Islands USFW. James Powel, USA TODAY, 16 Feb. 2025 The game starts with the player sitting in the East position, and players will take turns to take and discard tiles in an attempt to create four sets of three tiles and a pair from their tiles. Claire Turrell, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for take turns

Word History

First Known Use

1613, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of take turns was in 1613

Browse Nearby Entries

Cite this Entry

“Take turns.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/take%20turns. Accessed 27 Feb. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!