churn
noun
\ ˈchərn
\
\
plural churns
Definition of churn
(Entry 1 of 2)
1
: a container in which cream is stirred or shaken to make butter
2
: a regular, quantifiable process or rate of change that occurs in a business over a period of time as existing customers are lost and new customers are added
The biggest problem they face is churn. Wireless providers lose an average of about 30% of their customers a year to competitors.— Brian O'Reilly
also
: a similar process or rate of change involving loss and addition of employees, companies, etc.
The resulting employment churn—the average job tenure is now two years, and today's typical 32-year-old has held nine different jobs—means more risks as well as more opportunities to discover new paths. — Jamais Cascio
churn
verb
churned;
churning;
churns
Definition of churn (Entry 2 of 2)
1
: to agitate (milk or cream) in a churn in order to make butter
The farmer churns his cream every day.
2a
: to stir or agitate violently
an old stern-wheeler churning the muddy river larger particles pound and churn the Moon's surface— E. M. Shoemaker
b
: to make (something, such as foam) by so doing
3
: to make (the account of a client) excessively active by frequent purchases and sales primarily in order to generate commissions
unscrupulous brokers may churn an account, trading frequently to generate high commissions— Mary Rowland
1
: to work a churn (as in making butter)
2a
: to produce, proceed with, or experience violent motion or agitation
her stomach was churning churning legs
b
: to proceed by or as if by means of rotating members (such as wheels or propellers)
boats churning across the harbor
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Examples of churn in a Sentence
Verb
The motorboats churned the water. The water churned all around us. The wheels began to slowly churn. He showed them how to churn butter.
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
Gray holds court with a nebbishy, self-mocking churn of anecdote and lamentation, and his humor, in the outer-borough Ashkenazi style, can leave one unsure where the shtick ends and the real self-loathing starts. — Nathan Heller, The New Yorker, "James Gray’s Journey from the Outer Boroughs to Outer Space," 9 Sep. 2019 Not that long ago, the Beavers produced a steady churn of NFL-caliber (or all-conference) defensive backs. — Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, "Oregon State preview: Nowhere to go but up for the Beavers (or so it seems)," 20 Aug. 2019 Not that long ago, the Beavers produced a steady churn of NFL-caliber (or all-conference) defensive backs. — Jon Wilner, The Denver Post, "Pac-12 team previews: Nowhere to go but up for Oregon State (game-by-game predictions)," 20 Aug. 2019 Her mother improvised a churn to turn carabao’s milk into butter, and when a pig was slaughtered, the children stuffed the meat into intestine casings to make chorizo. — Ligaya Mishan, New York Times, "She Was Filipino Food’s Greatest Champion. Now Her Work Is Finding New Fans.," 30 July 2019 Two days later, the roster churn is continuing in Denver as the Giants are adding outfielder Steven Duggar and infielder Scooter Gennett ahead of their three-game series against the Rockies. — Kerry Crowley, The Mercury News, "Giants cut Tyler Austin, promote Steven Duggar ahead of series at Coors Field," 2 Aug. 2019 Semifreddos and no-churn ice-cream get a lot of the no-bake-dessert attention, but a retro icebox cake is equally deserving and delicious. — Jessie Sheehan, Washington Post, "How to make an icebox cake, the coolest (literally!) no-bake dessert," 1 Aug. 2019 Factor investing, by contrast, involves a lot of churn—and thus expense. — The Economist, "Lots of investors bet on “factors”, such as size, value and momentum," 18 July 2019 On Friday, IndieWire published a story detailing the creative turmoil of Big Little Lies’ post-production, and the writer Chris O’Falt’s reporting explains a lot about the choppy episodes that have resulted from the churn. — Megan Garber, The Atlantic, "Big Little Lies Forgot the Thing That Made It Great," 16 July 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
The storm continues to churn in the Atlantic Ocean, after tearing through the Bahamas, killing at least 20 people, and moving up the coast of the southeastern U.S. It's been a week filled with anxiety and fear for millions of people. — Annah Aschbrenner, USA TODAY, "OnPolitics: Dorian takes over the week," 6 Sep. 2019 Dorian was expected to churn towards Florida by the day’s end, before bringing its powerful winds and dangerous surf along the coasts of Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina by late Thursday. — Reuters, The Mercury News, "Hurricane Dorian tracker: Category 3 storm creeps toward Florida," 3 Sep. 2019 Hurricane Juliette continues to churn off the west coast of Mexico and will send elevated surf to San Diego County on Wednesday and Thursday, according to the National Weather Service. — Gary Robbins, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Hurricane Juliette will send elevated surf to San Diego County on Wednesday," 3 Sep. 2019 Either continue to churn or fold in ingredients by hand. — Callie Blount, al, "How to make homemade peach frozen yogurt," 15 Aug. 2019 After the delightful news broke that Halle Bailey will play Ariel in the upcoming remake, the rumor mill began to churn once more, and soon half the internet was convinced that her love interest would be played by Harry Styles. — Emily Dixon, Marie Claire, "Sorry, Everyone: Turns Out Harry Styles Turned Down the Role of Prince Eric in 'The Little Mermaid'," 14 Aug. 2019 This year’s San Diego Comic-Con has come and gone, but the monthly cycle of comics continues to churn. — Christian Holub, EW.com, "5 comics to read this August: Epic battles on fallen worlds," 2 Aug. 2019 Tropical Storm Barry continues to churn in the Gulf, possibly on its way to becoming a hurricane. — Leada Gore | Lgore@al.com, al.com, "Tropical Storm Barry: What we know today; path, timing; Gulf Coast beaches remain closed," 12 July 2019 Coastal Louisiana is under a Hurricane Warning as Barry continued to churn west at about 3 mph, the National Hurricane Center said Thursday in its 11 p.m. advisory. — Tiffini Theisen, orlandosentinel.com, "Tropical Storm Barry churns in Gulf of Mexico, expected to become Hurricane Barry on Friday or Saturday, forecasters say," 11 July 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'churn.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for churn
churn
noun
English Language Learners Definition of churn
(Entry 1 of 2)
: a container in which cream is stirred or shaken to make butter
churn
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of churn (Entry 2 of 2)
: to stir or mix something (such as water or mud) with force
: to move in a circle
: to make (butter) by stirring or shaking cream in a churn
See the full definition for churn in the English Language Learners Dictionary
churn
noun
\ ˈchərn
\
\
Kids Definition of churn
(Entry 1 of 2)