eddy
noun
ed·dy
| \ ˈe-dē
\
\
plural eddies
Definition of eddy
(Entry 1 of 3)
1a
: a current of water or air running contrary to the main current
especially
: a circular current : whirlpool
b
: something moving similarly
2
: a contrary or circular current (as of thought or policy)
eddy
verb
eddied;
eddying
Definition of eddy (Entry 2 of 3)
: to cause to move in an eddy
: to move in an eddy or in the manner of an eddy
Eddy
biographical name
Ed·dy
| \ ˈe-dē
\
\
Definition of Eddy (Entry 3 of 3)
Mary (Morse) 1821–1910 née Baker American founder of the Christian Science Church
Examples of eddy in a Sentence
Noun
The boat was caught in a powerful eddy.Verb
The wind gusted and eddied around us. The waves swirled and eddied against the pier.
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
Emotionally, the film operates in a classic Gray area, with barely perceptible eddies that build to a mighty existential wrench. — Rachel Yang, EW.com, "First Ad Astra reviews say Brad Pitt shines in thoughtful, slightly familiar movie," 29 Aug. 2019 Pour milk in coffee, and the eddies and tendrils of white soon fade to brown. — Wired, "Fractal Patterns Offer Clues to the Universe's Origin," 11 Aug. 2019 The definition of turbulence is fairly straightforward: chaotic and capricious eddies of air, disturbed from a calmer state by various forces. — Michelle Z. Donahue, National Geographic, "What is turbulence—and how can you calm down about it?," 12 June 2019 After all, the Midcentury Modern craze that has millennial home buyers so smitten today is itself to a great extent the creation of Wright—reinforced by the back-eddy of his European admirers. — Michael J. Lewis, WSJ, "Bulldozing a Modernist Landmark," 22 June 2019 On the physical side, turbulence happens when a smooth fluid flow starts to split into smaller eddies and vortices. — Quanta Magazine, "The Trouble With Turbulence," 28 Jan. 2019 Larger logs control the very shape and flow of streams, creating pools and back eddies where returning salmon rest and spawn. — Brian Payton, Smithsonian, "How Driftwood Reshapes Ecosystems," 9 Feb. 2018 Turbulence almost always steals energy from larger flows and channels it into smaller eddies. — Joshua Sokol, WIRED, "Flattened Fluids Help Scientists Understand Oceans and Atmospheres," 7 July 2018 Redbreasts haunt Central Texas rivers, concentrating in the eddies and channels and deep pools where current is light or absent. — Shannon Tompkins, Houston Chronicle, "June spawn signals peak in Texas sunfish action," 3 June 2018Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
The dancers’ bodies seem always a-curve, torsos and arms frequently describing circles in the air, or whole bodies eddying down and pooling out into soft rolls on the floor. — Janine Parker, BostonGlobe.com, "David Roussève’s REALITY pays tribute to an unsung hero," 5 July 2019 The generous space between them is insurance that a fire in one is less likely to spread to another, and the arrangement ensures there won’t be a constricted area where the wind might eddy in a blizzard and pile snow against a tent entrance. — Barry Lopez, Harper's magazine, "Polar Light," 10 Jan. 2019 This is all great, but no one has ever measured the way that eddies flux heat or CO2. — Quanta Magazine, "Scientists Parse Ocean’s Dynamic Role in Climate Change," 11 Apr. 2013 Below, a meadow of soft gold wild grass sways in the wind like the bay’s eddying waters. — Hamish Bowles, Vogue, "Inside Tory Burch’s Lovingly Restored Antigua Getaway," 15 Aug. 2018 Around the ceiling light, a swarm of flies eddied, droning monotonously. — Ben Taub, The New Yorker, "The Boarder," 30 Apr. 2018 For sixteen months, the Boeing 777 wing flap sailed the Indian Ocean Gyre, meandering and eddying, speeding up and slowing unpredictably, before making landfall on Réunion Island off the east coast of Africa in July. — Bucky Mcmahon, Esquire, "If Anyone Finds MH370, It Will Be the Men on This Ship," 14 Sep. 2015These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'eddy.' 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 eddy
eddy
noun
English Language Learners Definition of eddy
(Entry 1 of 2)
: a circular movement of air or water
eddy
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of eddy (Entry 2 of 2)
: to move in a circle : to form an eddy
See the full definition for eddy in the English Language Learners Dictionary
eddy
noun
ed·dy
| \ ˈe-dē
\
\
plural eddies
Kids Definition of eddy
(Entry 1 of 2)
: a current of air or water running against the main current or in a circle
eddy
verb
eddied;
eddying
Kids Definition of eddy (Entry 2 of 2)
: to move in a circle : to form an eddy
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