turn up

3 meanings

Meanings
  1. 1 find or discover something, often by chance B2
  2. 2 make something louder or stronger (a TV, radio, heating) A2
  3. 3 arrive or appear somewhere, often unexpectedly B1
1 turn sth up

find or discover something, often by chance

B2

What does "turn up" mean in this sense?

This sense of 'turn up' describes the result of a search, investigation, or inquiry — when a process produces or reveals something that was previously unknown or hidden. The subject is typically the search process itself (an audit, an investigation, a dig), rather than a person, and the object is whatever was discovered: evidence, clues, documents, irregularities. What makes this phrasal verb distinctive is the implication of an active process that yields findings, even when no particular effort is emphasised. You'll encounter it frequently in journalism, police reports, and academic writing, though it also appears in everyday conversation when someone describes what a search produced. A useful way to spot this sense: if 'turn up' is followed by a direct object naming something discovered, you're looking at this meaning.

Examples

How to use it

process/search + turn up + object

The most typical structure, where an impersonal noun describing a search or investigation is the subject and the thing discovered is the object.

The forensic analysis turned up traces of paint that matched the suspect's car.

turn + object (pronoun) + up

When the object is a pronoun, it must be placed between the verb and the particle — never after 'up'.

Investigators suspected financial fraud, and the audit turned it up within days.

turn up + nothing / very little / something

Indefinite pronouns like 'nothing', 'something', or 'very little' are placed between verb and particle to report the overall outcome of a search.

The team searched the archive for weeks but turned up nothing of value.

object + be turned up + by + process/agent

The passive is natural in this sense, especially in journalism, when the focus is on what was found rather than who found it.

Several discrepancies were turned up by the financial review and referred to management.

person + turn up + object (result of searching)

A person can be the subject, but only when they are clearly conducting a search; the sentence should make it obvious that a discovery was made through their effort.

Her research turned up a set of letters that completely changed our understanding of the case.

Common Collocations

evidencecluesnothingresultsinformationleads

Common Mistakes

Confusing with the 'arrive' sense

Because 'turn up' also means to arrive or appear unexpectedly, learners sometimes use or read this sense where the other is meant. The key test is simple: the discovery sense always takes a direct object (what was found); if there's no object, the sentence almost certainly means 'arrive'.

✗ The investigation turned up after several months.
✓ The investigation turned up several new leads after a few months.
Pronoun placed after the particle

When the object is a pronoun, it must go between 'turned' and 'up'. Placing it after the particle is ungrammatical in English.

✗ The search turned up it almost immediately.
✓ The search turned it up almost immediately.
Using a person as subject without a clear search context

In this sense, the subject is usually a process (a search, an audit, a dig). Using a person as the subject is possible, but the sentence should make clear they were actively searching — otherwise it can sound odd or be misread as the 'arrive' sense.

✗ My colleague turned up some documents. (ambiguous — did she find them or bring them?)
✓ My colleague's research turned up some documents that hadn't been catalogued.

Usage

In this sense, the subject is usually a process or activity (a search, an investigation, an audit), not a person. This meaning is more common in written and journalistic English than in casual conversation.

2 turn sth up

make something louder or stronger (a TV, radio, heating)

A2

Sense 2: What does "turn sth up" mean?

To turn up something means to increase its level — making it louder, hotter, or brighter. You use it most often with devices like a TV, radio, or stereo, or with settings like the heating or air conditioning. For example, if the music is too quiet, you turn it up so you can hear it better. It can also describe making something more intense in general, like turning up the heat in a competition. The opposite of turn up is turn down, which means to reduce the level.

Examples

How to use it

turn up + thing

The most common pattern — the object (what you are increasing) comes after 'up'.

Can you turn up the volume? I can barely hear it.

turn + thing + up

With short noun phrases, the object can go between 'turn' and 'up'. Both positions are natural.

She turned the music up as soon as her favourite song started.

turn + pronoun + up

When the object is a pronoun like 'it' or 'them', it must go between 'turn' and 'up' — never after 'up'.

This song is great — turn it up!

could / can / would you turn up + thing

Modal verbs are very common with this phrasal verb, especially when making a polite request.

Would you mind turning up the heating a little? It's quite cold in here.

be turned up

The passive form is possible when you want to focus on the result rather than who did the action.

The music was turned up so loud that we couldn't have a conversation.

Common Collocations

turn up the volumeturn up the musicturn up the heatturn up the TVturn up the radioturn it up

Common Mistakes

Pronoun placement

When the object is a pronoun like 'it', you must put it between 'turn' and 'up'. Putting it after 'up' is incorrect in English.

✗ Can you turn up it?
✓ Can you turn it up?
Confusing 'turn up' with 'turn on'

'Turn on' means to start a device that is switched off. 'Turn up' means to increase the level of something that is already working. Use 'turn on' to start the TV, and 'turn up' to make it louder.

✗ The room is quiet. Can you turn up the radio?
✓ The radio isn't on yet. Can you turn on the radio? (Then: Can you turn it up a bit?)
Missing object

In this sense, 'turn up' always needs an object — you must say what you are increasing. Without an object, the sentence has a completely different meaning (it means to arrive or be found).

✗ It's cold. Can you turn up?
✓ It's cold. Can you turn up the heating?

Usage

This phrase is neutral and used in both British and American English in everyday conversation. It can also be used figuratively to mean increasing intensity in general, such as 'turn up the pressure' or 'turn up the heat' in a competitive situation.

3 turn up

arrive or appear somewhere, often unexpectedly

B1

Sense 3: What does "turn up" mean?

To turn up means to arrive somewhere or make an appearance, often without much warning or at an unexpected time. It is very commonly used in British English for situations where someone shows up at a place or event — sometimes late, sometimes uninvited, sometimes completely out of the blue. The phrase often carries a slight sense of surprise, as if the arrival was not entirely expected. You can use it with 'at' before a place ('turned up at the office') or 'to' before an event ('turned up to the wedding'). In formal writing, 'arrive' or 'attend' would be more appropriate choices.

Examples

How to use it

subject + turn up + (adverb/adverb phrase)

This is the core pattern — 'turn up' is used with no object, often followed by an adverb describing how the person arrived.

He turned up late as usual and everyone gave him a look.

subject + turn up + at + place

Use 'at' to say where someone arrived — typically a location like a building, someone's home, or a specific place.

She turned up at my door with a suitcase and a big smile.

subject + turn up + to + event

Use 'to' when the destination is an event or organised occasion rather than a physical location.

Only five people turned up to the training session, which was disappointing.

fail to turn up / not turn up

A common pattern for describing when someone was expected but did not appear.

The guest speaker failed to turn up, so we had to change the whole plan.

subject + turn up + unannounced/unexpectedly/uninvited + (at/to ...)

Adverbs like these are very natural with this phrasal verb and often reinforce the sense of surprise.

My old school friend turned up unannounced on a Tuesday afternoon.

Common Collocations

turn up lateturn up unannouncedturn up to a meetingturn up at the doorturn up unexpectedlyfail to turn up

Common Mistakes

Adding an object after 'turn up'

In this sense, 'turn up' never takes a direct object — adding one changes the meaning entirely, suggesting you are increasing something like volume or heat. If you see a direct object after 'turn up', it is a different meaning.

✗ She turned up the party at 10pm.
✓ She turned up at the party at 10pm.
Mixing up 'at' and 'to'

Use 'at' with physical locations ('turned up at the station') and 'to' with events or occasions ('turned up to the interview'). Using 'to' with a place or 'at' with an event sounds unnatural.

✗ He turned up to the office without calling first.
✓ He turned up at the office without calling first.
Confusing the arrival sense with the 'increase' sense

If 'turn up' is followed by a direct object (like 'the music' or 'the heat'), it means to increase something — not to arrive. Always check: if there's no object and a person is the subject, it means arrive.

Usage

'Turn up' in this sense is informal and more common in British English; in American English, 'show up' is often preferred. Use 'arrive' or 'attend' in formal writing instead.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does 'turn up' always mean 'discover'? I've seen it used in so many different ways.

No — 'turn up' has several distinct meanings in English. This particular sense (to yield or discover something through a search) is just one of them. The clearest sign you're dealing with this sense is that the verb takes a direct object naming something found, and the subject is usually a process like a search or investigation. Other meanings are explained separately on this page.

Can I use 'turn up' in this sense with a continuous tense, like 'the search is turning up new clues'?

Technically possible, but it sounds awkward and is rarely used this way. In practice, you'll see this sense mostly in the simple past, present perfect, and future simple. If you want to describe an ongoing search that is producing results, a simple restructuring — such as 'the search has turned up new clues' or 'the search continues to turn up new clues' — sounds more natural.

What kinds of things can be 'turned up' by a search or investigation?

Typically, things like evidence, clues, leads, documents, information, irregularities, discrepancies, or results. These are all things that were previously unknown or hidden and are now revealed. You can also 'turn up nothing' or 'turn up very little' to report that a search produced no useful findings.

Is 'turn up' in this sense used more in writing or in speech?

It's more common in written and journalistic English — you'll frequently see it in news reports, investigations, and formal writing. In everyday conversation, people more often say 'find' or sometimes 'dig up'. That said, it's not exclusively formal, and using it in speech won't sound unusual.

What's the difference between 'the name turned up in the investigation' and 'the name came up in the investigation'?

'Come up' is intransitive and suggests that something surfaced on its own, almost incidentally. 'Turn up' in the discovery sense implies an active search process that produced a result — there's more of a sense that something was actively found. In practice the difference is subtle, but 'turned up' fits better when you want to emphasise that a search or inquiry yielded a specific finding.

Can 'turn up' only be used with music and TV, or can it be used for other things too?

It works with many things — any device or setting that has a level you can increase. Common examples include the heating, the air conditioning, the brightness on a screen, and the bass on a speaker. It can even be used in a more figurative way, like 'turn up the pressure', meaning to make a situation more intense.

Does 'turn up' always mean to increase something? I've heard it used differently.

'Turn up' has more than one meaning. In this sense, it always needs an object (for example, 'turn up the volume'). If you see 'turn up' without an object, it probably means to arrive (as in 'He turned up late') or to be found (as in 'My keys turned up in my bag'). Those are completely separate meanings.

Is 'turn up the volume' or 'turn the volume up' more natural?

Both are very natural and native speakers use both. In everyday speech, 'turn it up' (with a pronoun) is probably the most common of all. With a noun phrase like 'the volume', both orders sound equally normal.

Can I use 'turn up' in a question to make a polite request?

Yes — this is actually one of the most natural ways to use it. Forms like 'Could you turn up the TV?' or 'Would you mind turning up the heat?' are very common and polite in everyday English.

Does 'turn up' always suggest the arrival was a surprise?

Not always, but it often carries that feeling. When someone 'turns up' somewhere, there is frequently a slight sense that it was unexpected, unplanned, or informal. You can make the surprise more explicit by adding words like 'unannounced' or 'out of nowhere', but the verb can also be used neutrally, for example: 'Only three people turned up.'

Is 'turn up' used the same way in American and British English?

Not quite. 'Turn up' in this sense is more typical of British English. American English speakers more often use 'show up' to express the same idea. Both are perfectly understandable in either variety, but if you are learning British English, 'turn up' is the more natural choice.

Can 'turn up' be used in the passive form?

No — because 'turn up' in this sense has no object, it cannot be made passive. You cannot say 'he was turned up at the party.' The subject is always the person who is arriving.

Can I use 'turn up' in formal writing, for example in an email to my professor?

It is better to avoid it in formal contexts. 'Turn up' is informal and works well in conversation, texts, or casual emails. In a formal email or report, use 'arrive', 'attend', or 'appear' instead — for example, 'Only five students attended the session.'

What is the difference between 'turn up' and 'show up'?

'Turn up' and 'show up' have very similar meanings in this context, but 'show up' is more common in American English while 'turn up' is more typical in British English. 'Show up' can sometimes suggest that someone's arrival is particularly noticeable or that others were not sure they would come, though in everyday use the two are largely interchangeable.

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