Word
turf
US/ˈtɝf/
UK/tˈɜːf/
Definitions
01grass and soil
B2 · Upper Intermediate Uncountable noun
n. a layer of earth with grass growing on it.
n. the surface layer of land consisting of grass and the network of roots and soil beneath it.
“The gardener laid fresh turf to fix the brown patches in the lawn.”
“After the heavy rains, the groundskeeper had to replace several sections of turf that had been churned into mud during the match.”
02territory
B2 · Upper Intermediate Uncountable noun Informal · Slang
n. the area or subject that a person or group considers their own.
n. a territory or sphere of influence claimed by a specific individual or group, often defended against outsiders.
“The local gang warned the newcomers to stay off their turf.”
“The marketing department felt the new digital strategy was an intrusion onto their turf by the IT team.”
03horse racing
C1 · Advanced Uncountable noun Sports Formal
n. the sport of horse racing, or the track where horses race.
n. the sport of horse racing; specifically, a grass track as opposed to a dirt or synthetic one.
Español:turf
“He spent his weekends at the turf, betting on the local races.”
“The champion horse performed significantly better on the turf than it did on the artificial all-weather surfaces.”
Usage
Usually used with 'the' (the turf).
04to force someone out
C1 · Advanced British English · Informal
v. to force someone to leave a place or a job.
v. to expel or eject someone from a position, location, or organisation.
“He was turfed out of the club for starting a fight.”
“The board decided to turf the CEO out after the company's shares plummeted for the third consecutive quarter.”
Usage
Often used with the particle 'out' (turf out).
Real-World Examples
“By the end of this strange, enthralling match two exhausted teams trudged off the Amex Stadium turf wondering how they had not won it.” “Between them, the ball rolled slowly over the turf.” Etymology
From Middle English turf, torf, from Old English turf (“turf, sod, soil, piece of grass-covered earth, greensward”), from Proto-West Germanic turb (“turf, peat”), from Proto-Germanic turbz (“turf, lawn”), from Proto-Indo-European *derbʰ- (“tuft, grass”). Cognates Cognate with Scots turr, truff (“turf, peat”), Dutch turf (“turf”), Middle Low German torf (“peat, turf”) (whence German Torf and German Low German Torf), Danish tørv (“peat”), Faroese, Icelandic, Norwegian, and Swedish torv (“turf”), Norn *torv (“peat”), French tourbe (“peat”), Finnish turve (“turf”), Lithuanian darbas (“bunch of leaves”), durpės (“peat”), Sanskrit दर्भ (darbhá, “a type of grass”), दूर्वा (dū́rvā, “bent grass”). Not cognate with Danish torv (“square, market, marketplace”), which is instead inherited from Old Norse torg (“marketplace”), from Old East Slavic търгъ (tŭrgŭ, “trade, trading, commerce, trade square”), ultimately from Proto-Slavic *tъ̑rgъ (“merchandise, commodity, wares”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Idioms
01. turf war
Domains
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.B2 FirstIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.5.5–6.5TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 4.0–4.572–94TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.785–944
- Frequency
- Frequent
- Level
- B2 · Upper Intermediate
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/turf
Traducciones: Kaikki.org (Wiktionary), CC BY-SA 4.0