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turn one's hand to

turn one's hand to idiom

Also, put one's hand to. Apply oneself to, begin working at, as in Next she turned her hand to starting her dissertation, or He was so lazy he wouldn't put his hand to anything. [c. 1700]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.