turn turtle

Meaning

Verb

• To capture a turtle by turning it onto its back.
• Especially of a boat or ship, or some other vehicle: to turn upside down.
• To fail; to go belly up.
• To roll upside down with one's surfboard (usually a longboard) to allow a wave, especially a wave that has already broken, to pass over.

Origin

• Possibly from the fact that turning a turtle and placing it on its back renders it helpless.