in turn vs. in its turn

Question

Hello everyone! I'd like to ask whether the following two phrases are interchangeable. The phrases are: in turn and in its/her/their etc. turn. The reason that I'm asking is that I was once told by a native speaker that 'in turn' is the only correct way of saying this. For example, in the sentence: "As we were told at the lecture, each category, in turn, is divided into..." is it possible to say - each category, in its turn,...?

Marius Hancu · Accepted Answer

I think that person was right.

I've just verified:
"each category, in its turn"
is very rare at Yahoo,
thus probably non-standard

Pinenut · Answer

Kind VillainHello everyone! I'd like to ask whether the following two phrases are interchangeable. The phrases are: in turn and in its/her/their etc. turn. The reason that I'm asking is that I was once told by a native speaker that 'in turn' is the only correct way of saying this. For example, in the sentence: "As we were told at the lecture, each category, in turn, is divided into..." is it possible to say - each category, in its turn,...?

The two phrases convey two different meanings and therefore they are not interchangeable.
- in turn : in due order of succession
- turn: a time when somebody gets an opportunity to do something or somebody is asked to do something, especially when this is rotated among other people

It's your turn to clean up.
I will do it in my turn.

Kind Villain · Answer

According to your explanation, the first meaning is the more appropriate in my sentence. Right?

MrPedantic · Answer

Hello Kind

Yes, that's right: "in turn" is the one for your context.

MrP

Kind Villain · Answer

Your words mean: trust others but believe in yourself. The phrase 'in its turn' was given in my text-book by a professional teacher. She's not native, which proves the words I wrote at the very beginning.

in turn vs. in its turn

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