heel turn

Meaning

Noun

• A ballroom dancing move in which the dancer steps backwards, shifts their weight on to the back foot, and turns on the heel of that foot while holding the other foot close and parallel to it.
• A turn executed by shifting weight on to the heel(s).
• An act of turning around abruptly, especially so that one faces the opposite direction.
• Synonym of heel/face turn

Origin

• From heel + turn; sense 2 (“act of turning around abruptly”) is derived from turn heel or turn on one's heel.
• Sense 4 (“situation in which a wrestler previously identified as a villain changes to being considered a hero”) is a pun on the word heel, which also means “a headlining wrestler whose ring persona embodies villainous or reprehensible traits”.