turn·out
ˈtərn-ˌau̇t 
1
: the number of people who participate in or attend an event
a heavy voter turnout
2
a
: a place where something (such as a road) turns out or branches off
b
: a space adjacent to a highway in which vehicles may park or pull into to enable others to pass
c
: a railroad siding
3
: an act of turning out
4
5
: a clearing out and cleaning
6
7
: net quantity of produce yielded
turned out; turning out; turns out
1
a
: to come or go out from home in or as if in answer to a summons
voters turned out in droves
b
: to get out of bed
2
a
: to prove to be in the result or end
the play turned out to be a flop
it turned out that we were both wrong
b
: to become in maturity
nobody thought he'd turn out like this
c
: end
stories that turn out happily
1
: to put out by or as if by turning a switch
turn out the lights
2
: to produce often rapidly or regularly by or as if by machine
a writer turning out stories
3
a
: to turn inside out
turning out his pockets
b
: to empty the contents of especially for cleaning or rearranging
also
: clean
5
: to equip, dress, or finish in a careful or elaborate way
6
: to call (a guard, a company, etc.) out from rest or shelter and into formation
Examples of turnout in a Sentence
Noun
The opening game of the season brought only a small turnout.
a 50 percent voter turnout
Verb
we turn out early on workdays
it's our practice to turn out the room after guests stay over
Recent Examples on the Web
Joseph Hernandez, Kansas City Star, 3 Apr. 2024
In what most observers expected to be a tight race, Hill won the primary with 60% of the vote, partly due to a remarkable voter turnout.
—Kayla Dwyer, The Indianapolis Star, 3 Apr. 2024
The initiative will likely boost voter turnout in what is expected to be a close rematch between President Biden and Donald Trump.
4.
—Alexandra Banner, CNN, 2 Apr. 2024
The protective gear worn by firefighters, known as turnout gear, presents another internal challenge.
—Monica Sanders, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Idaho lawmakers explore options Furniss said in an interview that lawmakers are discussing ways to reduce the vote threshold in elections when turnout is high.
—Becca Savransky, Idaho Statesman, 27 Mar. 2024
Truth Social’s user turnout is underperforming several other social media platforms.
—Sunny Nagpaul, Fortune, 27 Mar. 2024
And Democratic voters could still sit out of the race, producing low turnout, or vote for more minor candidates like author Marianne Williamson.
—Tal Axelrod, ABC News, 19 Mar. 2024
The impact of Biden's visit on turnout is not clear
Biden visited the state on the day voters finished casting ballots.
—Ronald J. Hansen, The Arizona Republic, 20 Mar. 2024
Philip Marcelo, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
For that matter, the show that Sugar turns out to be is interesting, too.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 5 Apr. 2024
Plan for the weather Weather can play a factor in how your eclipse photograph turns out.
—Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 5 Apr. 2024
Thousands of people turned out for a free viewing party at Fleet Science Center in San Diego’s Balboa Park during the 2017 event.
—Gary Robbins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2024
And while that turned out to be an ambitious goal, as free agency’s melee quickly proved, at least one key defender is staying put.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 5 Apr. 2024
Its wide-ranging impact turns out to be not a quirk, but a byproduct of the East Coast’s unique geology of ancient fault lines and rock composition.
—Matt Simon, WIRED, 5 Apr. 2024
Losing the flowers is disappointing, but the plant typically turns out fine.
—Steve Bender, Southern Living, 5 Apr. 2024
Employment growth in 2023 turned out to be two to four times that pace—an average of about 255,000 per month—according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
—Wendy Edelberg and Tara Watson, TIME, 5 Apr. 2024
Noun
Voter turnout for the 2006 election was 25% in Kansas City and 44% in Jackson County, according to previous Star reporting.
—Joseph Hernandez, Kansas City Star, 3 Apr. 2024
In what most observers expected to be a tight race, Hill won the primary with 60% of the vote, partly due to a remarkable voter turnout.
—Kayla Dwyer, The Indianapolis Star, 3 Apr. 2024
The initiative will likely boost voter turnout in what is expected to be a close rematch between President Biden and Donald Trump.
4.
—Alexandra Banner, CNN, 2 Apr. 2024
The protective gear worn by firefighters, known as turnout gear, presents another internal challenge.
—Monica Sanders, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Idaho lawmakers explore options Furniss said in an interview that lawmakers are discussing ways to reduce the vote threshold in elections when turnout is high.
—Becca Savransky, Idaho Statesman, 27 Mar. 2024
Truth Social’s user turnout is underperforming several other social media platforms.
—Sunny Nagpaul, Fortune, 27 Mar. 2024
And Democratic voters could still sit out of the race, producing low turnout, or vote for more minor candidates like author Marianne Williamson.
—Tal Axelrod, ABC News, 19 Mar. 2024
The impact of Biden's visit on turnout is not clear
Biden visited the state on the day voters finished casting ballots.
—Ronald J. Hansen, The Arizona Republic, 20 Mar. 2024
Verb
But a key portion of the order turned out to be a mistake.
—Philip Marcelo, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
For that matter, the show that Sugar turns out to be is interesting, too.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 5 Apr. 2024
Plan for the weather Weather can play a factor in how your eclipse photograph turns out.
—Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 5 Apr. 2024
Thousands of people turned out for a free viewing party at Fleet Science Center in San Diego’s Balboa Park during the 2017 event.
—Gary Robbins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2024
And while that turned out to be an ambitious goal, as free agency’s melee quickly proved, at least one key defender is staying put.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 5 Apr. 2024
Its wide-ranging impact turns out to be not a quirk, but a byproduct of the East Coast’s unique geology of ancient fault lines and rock composition.
—Matt Simon, WIRED, 5 Apr. 2024
Losing the flowers is disappointing, but the plant typically turns out fine.
—Steve Bender, Southern Living, 5 Apr. 2024
Employment growth in 2023 turned out to be two to four times that pace—an average of about 255,000 per month—according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
—Wendy Edelberg and Tara Watson, TIME, 5 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'turnout.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
Noun
1688, in the meaning defined at sense 3
Verb
1546, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 4a
Dictionary Entries Near turnout
Cite this Entry
“Turnout.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/turnout. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
turnout
1 of 2 noun
turn·out
ˈtər-ˌnau̇t
: the number of people who attend or who do something (as vote)
a good turnout at the meeting
expected a light voter turnout
turn out
2 of 2 verbˌtər-ˈnau̇t,
ˈtər-
1
: to put or empty out of a container
2
: to make by or as if by machine
the factory turns out automobiles
turns out a new story every month
3
: turn off sense 2
who turned out the light?
4
: to come or go out from home
thousands turned out to see them
5
: to prove to be
it turned out to be only the cat
of course, I turned out to be right
More from Merriam-Webster on turnout
Nglish: Translation of turnout for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of turnout for Arabic Speakers
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