Centrifugal and Science

Centrifugal force is what keeps a string with a ball on the end taut when you whirl it around. A centrifuge is a machine that uses centrifugal force. At the end of a washing machine's cycle, it becomes a weak and simple centrifuge as it whirls the water out of your clothes. Centrifuges hundreds of thousands of times as powerful are essential to nuclear technology and drug manufacturing. Part of an astronaut's training occurs in a centrifuge that generates force equal to several times the force of gravity (about like a washing machine) to get them used to the forces they'll encounter in a real space mission.

Examples of centrifugal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective Cold press juicers tend to be more expensive than their centrifugal counterparts because their machinery is designed to slowly and gently separate juice. — Brigitt Earley, Good Housekeeping, 31 May 2022 Another common form of hair loss is central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia, or CCCA, which is a form of scarring alopecia that occurs on the scalp and causes permanent hair loss. — NBC News, 7 Jan. 2022 The modern era was characterized by fluidity, by centrifugal forces that redistributed power away from long-standing centers of authority. — Washington Post, 22 Apr. 2022 Souter is a centrifugal intellectual force in Rosengart’s career, a proverbial north star, the person to whom Rosengart turns when grappling with legal questions and quandaries about life. — Malina Saval, Variety, 21 Apr. 2022 For you, fruit juice friend, the Breville Juice Fountain Plus is the best centrifugal juicer. — Lauren Joseph, Bon Appétit, 17 Mar. 2022 But besides that noisiness, centrifugal juicers do have their appeal. — Lauren Joseph, Bon Appétit, 17 Mar. 2022 Because of the Navi’s centrifugal clutch, all standing starts begin from a puttering idle. — Dan Neil, WSJ, 4 Mar. 2022 There will be a lot less exploratory behavior if the ant raft is spinning in response to centrifugal or shear forces. — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 5 Mar. 2022 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Made from food-grade stainless steel, the 65-pound PURE does, as the name suggests, require more steps than a typical centrifugal or masticating juicer. — Alyson Sheppard, Robb Report, 5 Aug. 2021 That’s what centrifugal means—to flee (fugere) the center. — Rhett Allain, Wired, 11 Apr. 2020 Five years ago, his kits for Porsche 911s and BMW M3s, which employed a Vortec centrifugal supercharger, were the most popular. — Scott Oldham, Car and Driver, 21 Feb. 2020 There will be a lot less exploratory behavior if the ant raft is spinning in response to centrifugal or shear forces. — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 8 Dec. 2019 Plenty of people remain almost crazy with anger, and the country’s political and cultural forces overall remain centrifugal, driving people to extremes. — Lance Morrow, WSJ, 17 Oct. 2018 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'centrifugal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.