The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Turning \Turn"ing\, n.
   1. The act of one who, or that which, turns; also, a winding;
      a bending course; a flexure; a meander.
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            Through paths and turnings often trod by day.
                                                  --Milton.
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   2. The place of a turn; an angle or corner, as of a road.
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            It is preached at every turning.      --Coleridge.
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   3. Deviation from the way or proper course. --Harmar.
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   4. Turnery, or the shaping of solid substances into various
      forms by means of a lathe and cutting tools.
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   5. pl. The pieces, or chips, detached in the process of
      turning from the material turned; -- usually used in the
      plural.
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   6. (Mil.) A maneuver by which an enemy or a position is
      turned.
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   Turning and boring mill, a kind of lathe having a vertical
      spindle and horizontal face plate, for turning and boring
      large work.

   Turning bridge. See the Note under Drawbridge.

   Turning engine, an engine lathe.

   Turning lathe, a lathe used by turners to shape their work.


   Turning pair. See the Note under Pair, n.

   Turning point, the point upon which a question turns, and
      which decides a case.
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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

turning point
    n 1: an event marking a unique or important historical change of
         course or one on which important developments depend; "the
         agreement was a watershed in the history of both nations"
         [syn: landmark, turning point, watershed]
    2: the intersection of two streets; "standing on the corner
       watching all the girls go by" [syn: corner, street
       corner, turning point]