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WOTD: turnkey

Posted on February 3, 2020February 2, 2020 by Wordsmyth

turnkey

noun

definition* :  one who has control of the keys in a prison or jail; jailer.

adjective

definition:  of or relating to a building, system, or the like, that is sold, supplied, or installed complete and ready to occupy or operate.
example:  He bought a turnkey restaurant which had once been a successful business.

See the full entry

Quotation:

* “This turnkey had given him to understand that he was lodged, like some few others in the jail, apart from the mass of prisoners; because he was not supposed to be utterly depraved and irreclaimable, and had never occupied apartments in that mansion before.” (Charles Dickens, Little Dorrit )

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