U-turn en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (Canada) audio
Etymology
From U + turn, from the similarity to the shape of the letter U.
Meanings
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A turn in a vehicle carried out by driving in a semicircle in order to travel in the opposite direction.
What's disappointing about all this doom and gloom is that the franchise has made the kind of whiplashing U-turn you might see in its car-chase sequences.
2025 May 14, Nicholas Barber, “'A miserable, apocalyptic tract': Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning could be 'the feel-bad film of the summer”, in BBC, archived from the original on 23 Jul 2025:
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(figuratively) A reversal of policy or opinion.
Rishi Sunak, the UK prime minister, announced a major U-turn on the government’s climate commitments last month, pushing back the deadline for selling new petrol and diesel cars and the phasing out of gas boilers.
2023 October 10, Senay Boztas, “Frans Timmermans urges European left to unite against right’s climate backlash”, in The Guardian, →ISSN, archived from the original on 23 Dec 2023:The government have done a U-turn and are now supporting greater European integration instead of opposing it.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| U-turns | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| u-turn | alternative | lexicographic |
Coordinates
three-point turn · left turn · K-turn
Deriveds
Descendants
Hypernyms
turn · turnaround · turn
Synonyms
backflip · turnaround · turnabout · uey · row-back · flipflop · flip-flop · about-face
Translations (60)
fr volte-face (semi-circular turn) · yue 掉頭 /掉头 (semi-circular turn) · ru поворо́т круго́м (semi-circular turn) · is U-beygja (semi-circular turn) · fi U-käännös (semi-circular turn) · cmn 轉頭 /转头 (semi-circular turn) · cs obrat o 180 stupňů (reversal of policy) · sv U-sväng (semi-circular turn) · de Kehrtwende (semi-circular turn) · cmn 髮夾彎 /发夹弯 (reversal of policy) · fr retournement (semi-circular turn) · nb U-sving (reversal of policy) · sv U-sväng (reversal of policy) · es cambio de sentido (semi-circular turn) · fr demi-tour (reversal of policy) · cmn 掉頭 /掉头 (semi-circular turn) · fr demi-tour (semi-circular turn) · da U-vending (reversal of policy) · de Hundertachtziggraddrehung (reversal of policy) · nn u-sving (reversal of policy) · ca canvi de sentit (semi-circular turn) · pt reviravolta (reversal of policy) · nl U-bocht (semi-circular turn) · tl likong pabalik (semi-circular turn) · cs obrat o 180 stupňů (semi-circular turn) · de Kehrtwende (reversal of policy) · de Wenden (semi-circular turn) · de Kehrtwendung (reversal of policy) · nb u-sving (semi-circular turn) · fr marche arrière (reversal of policy) · cy tro yn ôl (semi-circular turn) · nn U-sving (reversal of policy) · de Fahrtrichtungswechsel (semi-circular turn) · yue 調頭 /调头 (semi-circular turn) · pt retorno (semi-circular turn) · ru разворо́т (semi-circular turn) · ka 180-იანი ბრუნი (semi-circular turn) · da U-vending (semi-circular turn) · fo U-sving (semi-circular turn) · es vuelta / virada / girada en U (semi-circular turn) · cmn 大轉彎 /大转弯 (reversal of policy) · de 180-Grad-Drehung (reversal of policy) · de Kehrtwendung (semi-circular turn) · fr revirement (reversal of policy) · nb U-sving (semi-circular turn) · cy tro pedol (semi-circular turn) · ja Ｕターン (semi-circular turn) · es viraje / giro / giramiento en U (semi-circular turn) · tl U-liko (semi-circular turn) · tr U-dönüşü (semi-circular turn) · ko 유턴 (semi-circular turn) · fr volte-face (reversal of policy) · cmn 調頭 /调头 (semi-circular turn) · de 180-Grad-Wende (reversal of policy) · cmn U轉 /U转 (semi-circular turn) · nb u-sving (reversal of policy) · nn U-sving (semi-circular turn) · nn u-sving (semi-circular turn) · de Hundertachtziggradwende (reversal of policy) · mk полукру́жно сврту́вање (semi-circular turn)