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Glite Dictionary
to turn a loss

to turn a loss

6.4
To make less money than you spend in a business or project
  • phrasal verb
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  • After analyzing the finances, they realized the investment turned a loss in its first year.

Examples

  • It was frustrating to see their marketing efforts turn a loss when they expected growth.

  • More importantly for me, it turned a loss into a push for all my.

    Blog text (15)

  • The hard slog is to turn a loss-maker into a profit maker; the easier road is to sell the company.

    Blog text (8)

  • The manager was disappointed when the project turned a loss instead of generating revenue.

Synonyms

to lose
vsto turn a loss
∞ 1.0

Become lower in value or quality

results specifically in a financial loss rather than a profit

How Profitable

to break even
27 3.3
to turn a loss
6.4

Surface Forms

turn a loss infinitive
turned a loss past
turned a loss past participle
turning a loss present participle
turns a loss third person singular

Morphology

turn + a + loss

The meaning is directly compositional: combining the financial sense of 'turn' (to earn or produce) with 'loss' (financial deficit) yields ‘to result in a financial loss’. It follows the productive English pattern exemplified by 'turn a profit' → 'turn a loss', so a B1 learner who knows the constituents should be able to infer the meaning.

Etymology

Turn a loss comes from business talk about money: imagine the final numbers turn the wrong way and become a loss instead of a 'profit', like flipping a plus into a minus. So turn a loss means the result is 'a loss' rather than a 'profit'.