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turning

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

7 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "turning", 7-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "turning" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "turning" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

turning is aEnglishnoun. It means: A turn or deviation from a straight course. Pronounced /ˈtɜː.nɪŋ/. It ranks #2,023 in English word frequency. Often confused with turnip and Turin.

Key facts for turning
PropertyValue
Headwordturning
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈtɜː.nɪŋ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#2,023
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs13
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of turning in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for turning is 7 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈtɜː.nɪŋ/. Corpus data places it at rank #2,023 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text.Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 11 documented wrong-spelling variants for turning, with forms such as "truning", "tturning", and "tunring". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 13 confusable-pair relationships, "turnip", "Turin", "trying", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English turnyng, turnynge, from Old English tyrning, turnung, equivalent to turn + -ing. Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is turning, spelled T-U-R-N-I-N-G, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    A turn or deviation from a straight course.
  2. 2
    At hockey, a foul committed by a player attempting to hit the ball who interposes their body between the ball and an opposing player trying to do the same.
  3. 3
    The cutting of wood or metal on a lathe to shape it as needed.
  4. 4
    The act of one who turns (rotates or twists).
  5. 5
    One of the four eras, each lasting for about 21 years, that make up a saeculum according to the Strauss-Howe generational theory.
  6. 6
    Shavings produced by turning something on a lathe.

Etymology

From Middle English turnyng, turnynge, from Old English tyrning, turnung, equivalent to turn + -ing.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: truning,tturning,tunring,turinng,turnign,turningg,turninng,turnnig,turnning,turrning,utrning

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for turning

Misspelling Variants of "turning"

truning7tturning8tunring7turinng7turnign7turningg8turninng8turnnig7
Misspelling Variants of "turning"

Frequency rank: #2,023 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "turning"?
"turning" is spelled T-U-R-N-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtɜː.nɪŋ/.
What does "turning" mean?
As a noun, "turning" means: A turn or deviation from a straight course.
What words are commonly confused with "turning"?
"turning" is commonly confused with "turnip", "Turin", "trying". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "turning"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "turning" is /ˈtɜː.nɪŋ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "turning"?
From Middle English turnyng, turnynge, from Old English tyrning, turnung, equivalent to turn + -ing. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter T in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.