turn into

verb

To become.

“all things turn into dust”

Meanings

verbturn into (third-person singular simple present turns into, present participle turning into, simple past and past participle turned into)

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

  1. intransitiveTo become.

    all things turn into dust

    2 more examples

    Near-synonyms: (intransitive) get, turn, go, come, fall, grow, wax; (reflexive) make [oneself], make [oneself] into

    Iron turns into rust in the presence of air and water.

    Synonyms: turn to, convert, change, transform, get, turn, go, come

  2. transitiveTo cause (something or someone) to become.

    He turned water into wine.

    3 more examples

    Near-synonyms: (transitive) make, make into

    "I am the nursery magic Fairy," she said. "I take care of all the playthings that the children have loved. When they are old and worn out and the children don't need them any more, then I come and take them away with me and turn them into Real."

    1921 June, Margery Williams, “The Velveteen Rabbit: Or How Toys Become Real”, in Harper’s Bazar, volume LVI, number 6 (2504 overall), New York, N.Y.: International Magazine Company, →ISSN, →OCLC

    Yet in “Through a Latte, Darkly”, a new study of how Starbucks has largely avoided paying tax in Britain, Edward Kleinbard […] shows that current tax rules make it easy for all sorts of firms to generate what he calls “stateless income”: […]. In Starbucks’s case, the firm has in effect turned the process of making an expensive cup of coffee into intellectual property.

    2013 June 22, “T time”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8841, page 68

    Synonyms: turn to, convert, change, transform, make, make into

  3. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see turn, into.

    I was just turning into my driveway when I got your call.

Synonyms & antonyms

verbTo cause (something or someone) to become.

Origin

Translations

Catalan convertir-se, esdevenir
  • convertir-seintransitive: become
  • esdevenirintransitive: become
Chinese Cantonese 成為 /成为
  • 成為 /成为intransitive: become
Chinese Mandarin 變得 /变得, 變成 /变成
  • 變得 /变得 (biànde)intransitive: become
  • 變成 /变成 (biànchéng)intransitive: become
Danish forvandle sig til
  • forvandle sig tilintransitive: become
Dutch overgaan
  • overgaanintransitive: become
Finnish muuttua
  • muuttuaintransitive: become
French devenir, se transformer en
  • devenirintransitive: become
  • se transformer enintransitive: become
German sich wandeln in, sich verwandeln in
  • sich wandeln inintransitive: become
  • sich verwandeln inintransitive: become
  • werdenintransitive: become
  • zu ... machentransitive: cause to become
Greek γίνομαι, κάνω
  • γίνομαι (gínomai)intransitive: become
  • κάνω (káno)transitive: cause to become
  • μεταμορφώνω (metamorfóno)transitive: cause to become
Hungarian válik, átváltozik
  • válikintransitive: become
  • átváltozikintransitive: become
  • változikintransitive: become
  • átváltozattransitive: cause to become
  • változtattransitive: cause to become
Korean 변하다
  • 변하다 (byeonhada)intransitive: become
Norwegian forvandle seg til
  • forvandle seg tilintransitive: become
Polish zmieniać się w, zmienić się w
  • zmieniać się wintransitive: become
  • zmienić się wintransitive: become
  • zmieniać wtransitive: cause to become
  • zmienić wtransitive: cause to become
Portuguese virar, tornar-se
  • virarintransitive: become
  • tornar-seintransitive: become
  • tornartransitive: cause to become
Russian превраща́ться, преврати́ться
  • превраща́ться (prevraščátʹsja)intransitive: become
  • преврати́ться (prevratítʹsja)intransitive: become
  • превраща́ть (prevraščátʹ)transitive: cause to become
  • преврати́ть (prevratítʹ)transitive: cause to become
Spanish convertirse en, devenir en
  • convertirse enintransitive: become
  • devenir enintransitive: become
  • tornarse enintransitive: become
  • convertir entransitive: cause to become
  • transformar entransitive: cause to become
  • transmutar entransitive: cause to become
  • tornar entransitive: cause to become
Turkish dönmek, çevirmek
  • dönmekintransitive: become
  • çevirmektransitive: cause to become
  • döndürmektransitive: cause to become
Cite this entry
APA

turn into. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/turn%20into

MLA

“turn into.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/turn%20into. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “turn into,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/turn%20into.

Source: turn into on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.