5

When I watch some sports events, narrator says,

"A turn-away crowd tonight, a sold-out American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX" (actually this one is from WWE ;-)

What is the meaning of " a turn-away crowd" ? "enthusiastic people" or "crazy fans"?

I cannot find this adjective usage in my dictionaries. It would be super if anybody can help.

2
  • 1
    Turn away: - To repel: The poor location of the house turned away prospective buyers. A crowd that is so big that it turns away (scares) other people who would like to join.
    – user66974
    Commented Oct 24, 2014 at 7:06
  • 3
    I don't think it's that the size of the crowd scares away additional crowd. Rather as Leach answered, the crowd being too big, that additional crowd had to be turned away because there is no more room. Commented Oct 24, 2014 at 8:36

1 Answer 1

8

If a venue is sold out, all tickets are sold and there are none left. People arriving too late will be turned away (refused entry).

turn away

Refuse to allow someone to enter or pass through a place:
tourists were turned away at the crossing points

[ODO]

A “turn-away crowd” is so large that people are being turned away because no more can be accommodated.

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .