Meaning trap
turn up
be found unexpectedly
To appear or be discovered, especially after being lost or missing, often by chance and unexpectedly.
Don't mix these meanings
Same phrase, different job.
To appear or be discovered, especially after being lost or missing, often by chance and unexpectedly.
'turn up' also has the more basic meaning 'arrive unexpectedly'; this is the advanced sense.
Hear it in context
Notice where the phrase sounds natural.
- Don’t worry about your passport—it’ll probably turn up sooner or later.discovery
- Sometimes, important documents that go missing during a move eventually turn up in the most unlikely places.IELTS speaking
Fix the pattern
Pattern: subject (thing/person) + turn up
WrongMy keys turned up themselves.
RightMy keys turned up.
It's intransitive here — don't add 'themselves'.
Patternsubject (thing/person) + turn up
Use it right
Choose the version that sounds natural in speech.
'Turn up' is the natural verb for something lost reappearing; 'resurfaced' is formal.
Build natural chunks
Words that usually travel with it.
turn up + discoveryeventuallyin the drawermissingagain
Don't confuse it
Unlike the B1 sense 'arrive unexpectedly' (which refers to a person going somewhere), this sense is about something or someone being discovered after being lost, not about arriving at a place.
Related
- turn up (arrive unexpectedly) — 'turn up' also has the more basic meaning 'arrive unexpectedly'; this is the advanced sense.