turn down
Britishverb
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to reduce (the volume or brightness) of (something)
turn the radio down
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to reject or refuse
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to fold down (a collar, sheets on a bed, etc)
adjective
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Fold or double down, as in They always turn down your bed here , or Turn down your collar . [c. 1600]
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Invert, as in She turned down her cards , or They turn down the glasses in the cupboard . [Mid-1700s]
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Reject, fail to accept, as in They turned down his proposal , or Joe was turned down at four schools before he was finally accepted . [Late 1800s]
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Diminish in volume, brightness, or speed. For example, Please turn down the radio; it's too loud , or They turned down the lights and began to dance . [Second half of 1800s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Portland supplemented the federal construction money with local dollars, creating incentives that were hard to turn down.
From Salon ● Jul. 4, 2026
When Washington wanted to build an Ebola facility for its citizens on Kenyan territory, President William Ruto said it would be "inhumane" to turn down the request.
From Barron's ● Jun. 24, 2026
Winning the FA Cup would turn down the noise, secure European qualification and offer bragging rights - but many of the deeper cracks will likely take years to fix.
From BBC ● May 16, 2026
“It’s not like we can call parents for backup care. I had to turn down the job.”
From MarketWatch ● May 13, 2026
I turn down the wrong street, away from the corner where Brother Khoi would be.
From "Inside Out and Back Again" by Thanhha Lai
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
