turn the table

verb

At a dinner party, to have guests turn from left to right (or vice versa) to talk to the people on their opposite side.

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Meanings

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

present singular third person turns the table · participle present turning the table · participle past turned the table · past turned the table

  1. alternativeAlternative form of turn the tables.

    But as United saw the game out, little did they know that, having looked likely to win their 13th Premier League title, it was City who turned the table to snatch glory from their arch-rivals' grasp.

    2012 May 13, Alistair Magowan, “Sunderland 0-1 Man Utd”, in BBC Sport
  2. datedAt a dinner party, to have guests turn from left to right (or vice versa) to talk to the people on their opposite side.
Cite this entry
APA

turn the table. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/turn%20the%20table

MLA

“turn the table.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/turn%20the%20table. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “turn the table,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/turn%20the%20table.

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