Turnkey or turkey? Selecting a turnkey contractor for your powder coating installation
The orgins of the word turnkey stem from several folktales
The one I like the best describes the act of buying an existing retail business. In such cases the sellers assure the buyers that all they need to do after the sale is to turn the key in the store's lock to begin operation. This assumes they bought the business lock, stock and barrel, another obvious reference to keys and locks