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
Ann BradleySeveral youths were around the phone, taking it in turns to gossip and joke with the operator.—Christopher Isherwood
Christopher IsherwoodExamples of take turns in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Pascal was absent from the night’s premiere, but Johnson and Evans had a lot of fun with their co-star’s head on a stick, taking turns to hold him aloft and kiss his visage.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 8 June 2025
Ohad Fisherman, a 39-year-old friend of twins Oren and Alon Alexander, is accused of pinning a woman down at a Miami Beach apartment on New Year’s Eve 2016, while the brothers took turns raping her.
—Charles Rabin, Miami Herald, 7 June 2025
Empower your team members to take turns piloting, effectively turning leadership into a relay rather than a marathon.
—David Meade, Forbes.com, 6 June 2025
Every afternoon for 20 years (1970-1991), a rotating group of Jewish Washingtonians took turns holding a vigil outside the embassy, often singing and dancing the hora.
—Time, 3 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for take turns
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Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 8 June 2025
Ohad Fisherman, a 39-year-old friend of twins Oren and Alon Alexander, is accused of pinning a woman down at a Miami Beach apartment on New Year’s Eve 2016, while the brothers took turns raping her.
—Charles Rabin, Miami Herald, 7 June 2025
Empower your team members to take turns piloting, effectively turning leadership into a relay rather than a marathon.
—David Meade, Forbes.com, 6 June 2025
Every afternoon for 20 years (1970-1991), a rotating group of Jewish Washingtonians took turns holding a vigil outside the embassy, often singing and dancing the hora.
—Time, 3 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for take turns
Cite this Entry
“Take turns.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/take%20turns. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.
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