Turnt
In Southern and Appalachian speech, "turnt" is the old-style past tense of "turn." It means turned, as in "She turnt the light off." This form survives from older English and remains common in mountain and rural talk.
synonyms: turned, switched, flipped
Hillbilly Dude Says...
I hear 'turnt' from old timers out in the country. It's gettin' more and more rare. Hillbilly Dude Says...
I hear 'turnt' from old timers out in the country. It's gettin' more and more rare. Pronunciation
[TURNT]
/tɜːrnt/
/tɜːrnt/
Meaning & Usage
- Past tense of "turn" (verb)
Earl:
You turnt the porch light off?
You turnt the porch light off?
Ruby:
I reckon I did" unless I just meant to.
I reckon I did" unless I just meant to.Origin and Etymology
Carried over from Early Modern English, when many past tenses ended in -t instead of -ed ("learnt," "spilt," "dreamt"). This pattern survived in rural Southern and Appalachian speech, where "turnt" became the natural spoken form of "turned."
Usage Notes
Not to be confused with modern slang "turnt" (meaning excited or drunk). In the South and Appalachia, this is a traditional grammatical form, not a new coinage.
- He turnt the light off. → He turned the light off.
- She turnt mean after he left. → She became mean.
- Older parallel forms: learnt, spilt, burnt.
Kin Topics
Related Pages
How to Cite This Page
- APA (7th edition)The Hillbilly Dude. (2025, October 5). Turnt. HillbillySlang.com. https://www.hillbillyslang.com/definitions/turnt
- MLA (9th edition)"The Hillbilly Dude." "Turnt." HillbillySlang.com, 5 Oct. 2025, https://www.hillbillyslang.com/definitions/turnt.
- Chicago (17th edition)The Hillbilly Dude. "Turnt." HillbillySlang.com. October 5, 2025. https://www.hillbillyslang.com/definitions/turnt.
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