This video explains the meaning and use of the phrasal verb 'turn around' in English. We show you how to use it with some easy examples to help you learn this phrasal verb so you can use it in spoken and Business English
This phrasal verb is most commonly used in relation to reversing the direction or course of somebody or something. In a literal sense, if you 'turn around,' you move your body so that it faces the opposite direction, usually because you have discovered that you were going the wrong way. Therefore, figuratively, to 'turn around' is often used in a positive sense to describe reversing a decline in performance, value, or health, as it implies that you are now facing or going in the right direction with something.
This concept can also be used in relation to the supply or delivery of something, especially in a professional context. For example, if you receive an order for something from a customer, then reverse its direction by sending the completed order back to them, that is a 'turnaround.'
The idea of reversing and changing direction can also be used negatively. For example, you can say or promise one thing and then do another, or change the intended meaning or purpose of something, such as someone's words, in order to make them look bad or win an argument.
So, as the video shows, 'turn around' is a useful and commonly used phrasal verb in both a social and professional context.