to turn on
- phrasal verb
- /tɜrn ɑn/
- NSFW
- Do I know what turns me on and do I know what turns me off?
- talk turns me on
This means sort of being turned on visioning yourself as as a woman.
- This means sort of being turned on visioning yourself as as a woman.
- I mean, I just, I just get a little turned on at times.
- You know, it's questions where, you know, questions turn me on, answers less so.
- And these aren't necessarily going to turn you on, but your SES will notice them.
- So you know what, MAGA, maybe that turns you on all that crazy shit that Trump says.
- My first turn on to you was when you knocked out Darren Till.
Examples
-
The number one factor that turns men on is you being turned on.
-
I leaned over to him and whispered, "You're really turning me on."
Fiction book (1999) -
I mean, I just, I just get a little turned on at times.
-
I hear plenty of guys who tell me nothing turns me on more than to see her turned on.
-
In fact, it seems to have turned her on even more.
Fiction book (1993) -
Think about something that really turns you on and then just rub down there.
Blog text (30) -
Dorky chicks like you turn me on too.
-
Arnold really turns her on and I just want to be there when it happens, that's all.
-
Her lumpy hips bulged against the shapeless black skirt as she turned her smile on me.
Fiction book (1993) -
Seeing him smile always turns on and makes my day better.
Synonyms
To make someone feel very happy, interested, or eager
To give a sudden strong feeling of excitement and pleasure
To please someone very much
Fill a place with strong feeling or energy
Make someone feel sexual desire or excitement
To make people feel strong emotion and want to act
Make someone feel a little excited in a playful or sexual way
To make people feel excited and ready to act
To disturb people or things
Antonyms
How Excited
- NSFW
- NSFW
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to depend on' is not directly derivable from the literal senses 'turn' (to change) and 'on' (active/powered), so a B1 learner who knows the constituents would likely not predict this sense. There is a loose, somewhat metaphorical link (turn + on/upon → be determined by), but the particle usage is idiomatic and less frequent, making the expression only partially transparent.
Etymology
Turn on may come from the image of flipping a switch that lights up people’s feelings, so music or a speech can turn the crowd on. That's why it means 'to make someone feel excited or stimulated'.