How to Use turn of phrase in a Sentence

turn of phrase

noun phrase
  • What an ominous turn of phrase.
    — Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 20 May 2026
  • One tiny turn of phrase left a lasting impact on us.
    — Katherine Polcari, Southern Living, 8 June 2026
  • Paulsen laughs good-naturedly at the turn of phrase.
    — Jourdan Rodrigue, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2025
  • Freud’s turn of phrase highlights precisely how, when in danger, our fight or flight response is activated.
    — Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2025
  • King quickly earned the affection of Bulls fans for his ability to transform a quick turn of phrase into a definitive piece of lore for a storied franchise.
    — Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 7 June 2026
  • Describing a bookstore as a place where the walls are lined with pages would be a bit clichéd, but in the case of The Last Bookstore, the turn of phrase becomes quite literal.
    — Kat Chen, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 Apr. 2026
  • Brash confessional moments at home are intertwined with recording sessions in the studio, where Love is electrified by the creative impulse or a new turn of phrase or rhyme scheme.
    — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 30 Jan. 2026
  • Even the film’s title is lifted from a turn of phrase that Turner’s younger son Ed has made up to catch people out, to feel superior and revel in their lack of understanding.
    — David Opie, IndieWire, 15 Feb. 2026
  • Mikey never ended up doing anything beyond flirting, but his unfortunate turn of phrase was all Sydney needed to begin exploring her options in the villa.
    — Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Apr. 2026
  • Of course, that turn of phrase could arguably apply to actions taken by David Ellison both when closing his deal to acquire Paramount and after he was installed as the new owner.
    — Pamela McClintock, HollywoodReporter, 26 Feb. 2026
  • Known as one of international TV’s most colorful, insightful and uniquely-spoken programming execs, his turn of phrase and read on the global market are always worth attention.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 31 Oct. 2025
  • Perhaps an odd turn of phrase for somebody who sounded positively besotted with the elvin Marc Bolan on his 2023 release Smalltown Stardust.
    — Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Pitchfork, 15 Apr. 2026
  • At this year’s White House Diwali celebration, Kash Patel used a conspicuous turn of phrase — one seemingly meant to distinguish himself from another kind of immigrant.
    — Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 16 Nov. 2025
  • That turn of phrase, which gives both the band’s eighth album and lead track its title, This Mirror Weighs a Ton, frankly doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, and that’s sort of the point since Banks came up with it while improvising the melodies and vocals simultaneously.
    — Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 9 June 2026
  • Lindsay-Abaire, who has a fondness for a good turn of phrase and an ear for the foibles of the tristate suburbs (both figuring in his Kimberly Akimbo), has said he was inspired in part by following his own neighborhood’s Google group, which had vicious fights about drainage systems.
    — Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 22 Apr. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'turn of phrase.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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