turn down

present singular third person turns down · participle present turning down · participle past turned down · past turned down

1. idiomaticTo refuse, decline, or deny.

   He turned down all our offers of help.

   2 more examples

   A local doctor had bought one canvas and but for that lucky chance he would have been out of pocket. Now he was muttering grumpily at Edmund, "Have to get something better this trip, Edmund. Got to pull up somehow or buyers will be turnin' us down. Sales been gettin' worse and worse these last years."

   1938, Norman Lindsay, Age of Consent, 1st Australian edition, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1962, →OCLC, page 17

   Govia Thameslink Railway declined to comment on the study and turned down our request for an interview to address the issues raised.

   2022 August 24, Paul Clifton, “Many disabled passengers are excluded from using the route”, in RAIL, number 964, page 29

   Antonyms: take up

2. idiomaticTo reduce the power, etc. of something by means of a control, such as the volume, heat, or light.

   Turn down the television so I can hear myself think.

   1 more example

   When it starts to boil, turn down the heat to a simmer.

3. idiomaticTo reposition by turning, flipping, etc. in a downward direction; to double or fold down.

   Turn down the blankets to let them air out.