turn to

go to someone for help, support, or advice

B2

What does "turn to sb" mean?

To turn to someone means to go to them for help, support, or advice when you are facing a difficult situation. It carries a sense of genuine need — the person turning to someone feels vulnerable or unsure and is actively choosing that individual or resource because they trust them or believe they can help. The phrase often implies an emotional element: you might turn to a close friend after receiving bad news, or turn to a professional when a problem feels too big to handle alone. It works equally well with people (a mentor, a therapist, family) and with broader resources (the internet, a helpline). Phrases like 'have no one to turn to' and 'not knowing who to turn to' are particularly common and carry a strong sense of isolation or uncertainty.

Examples

How to use it

turn to + person/source

The most common structure — the object (a person or source of support) always follows 'to' directly.

Whenever she feels overwhelmed at work, she turns to her manager for guidance.

turn to + person + for + noun

Adding 'for + noun' specifies the kind of help being sought and makes the sentence more precise.

He turned to his older brother for advice when he didn't know what to do.

question word + to turn to

The infinitive form 'to turn to' is very natural after question words like 'who', 'where', and 'someone'.

After the argument, she didn't know who to turn to.

have no one / someone to turn to

This fixed-feeling pattern is especially common and expresses whether someone has support available to them.

Moving to a new city was hard — for the first few weeks, he felt he had no one to turn to.

turn to + pronoun

Pronoun objects work very naturally with this phrasal verb and are common in everyday speech.

My colleague always knows what to say — I always turn to her when I need a fresh perspective.

Common Collocations

turn to a friendturn to familyturn to someone for adviceturn to someone for supporthave no one to turn toknow who to turn to

Common Mistakes

Confusing 'turn to a person' with 'turn to an activity'

This sense of 'turn to' takes a person or source of support as its object. If the object is an activity or behaviour (like crime or gambling), it belongs to a completely different sense of the phrasal verb. Pay attention to what follows 'to' to make sure you are using the right meaning.

✗ After losing his job, he turned to his friends and also turned to gambling — both meaning the same thing.
✓ After losing his job, he turned to his friends for support. (Turning to gambling describes starting a habit, which is a different sense.)
Trying to use the continuous form

'Turn to someone' describes a decision or moment of seeking help, not an ongoing action, so the present continuous sounds unnatural in most contexts. Use the simple present or past instead.

✗ I am turning to my mentor every time I have a problem.
✓ I turn to my mentor every time I have a problem.
Attempting to use the passive

'Turn to' in this sense cannot be made passive — the person being turned to cannot become the subject of the sentence. Keep the person seeking help as the subject.

✗ My sister was turned to by me when I needed help.
✓ I turned to my sister when I needed help.

Usage

This phrasal verb is neutral in register and works in both spoken and written English. It often appears with question words in infinitive phrases, such as 'I didn't know who to turn to' or 'she had no one to turn to', which sound very natural to native speakers.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does 'turn to' always mean going to a person, or can it be a thing?

It can be either. You can turn to a person (a friend, a therapist, a mentor) or to a resource (the internet, a helpline, a book). What matters is that the object is a source of help or support — not an activity or behaviour, which would belong to a different sense of 'turn to'.

Does 'turn to' suggest that the situation is serious?

Not always serious, but it does imply genuine need. There is often an emotional undertone — the person turning to someone really needs help and is actively choosing to seek it. It sounds slightly more heartfelt than simply 'ask someone for help'.

Can 'turn to' have more than one meaning? I've seen it used in different ways.

Yes, 'turn to' has several distinct senses in English. This entry covers the meaning of going to someone for help or support. There are other uses, such as starting a bad habit or describing physical movement, but those are separate meanings handled elsewhere on this platform.

Is 'have no one to turn to' a fixed expression, or can I change the wording?

It is not strictly fixed, but it is a very common and natural-sounding pattern. You can adjust it — for example, 'I had someone to turn to' or 'she finally found someone to turn to' — and it will still sound idiomatic. The structure of 'someone / no one / who to turn to' is particularly characteristic of this phrasal verb.

What is the difference between 'turn to someone' and 'reach out to someone'?

'Reach out to' emphasises the act of making contact — it highlights that you are initiating communication. 'Turn to' emphasises the choice of who you go to for support — it focuses more on the relationship of trust or the source of help. Both are natural in similar situations, but 'turn to' often carries a slightly more emotional or vulnerable tone.

Ready to practise?

Practise 1,000+ English phrasal verbs with interactive gap-fill exercises.

Start Practising →