# young Turk

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/young-turk
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

A young person who agitates for political or other reform; a young person with a rebellious disposition.

## Examples

- The young Turk in the office wants to change all our old rules.
- As a young Turk in the local government, she constantly challenges the traditional policies of the senior committee members.
- The political party struggled to contain the young Turk, whose radical proposals for reform threatened to dismantle the established hierarchy of the organization.

## Origin

Calque of French Jeune-Turc, from which also Turkish Jön Türk has been borrowed.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.