churn

noun \ ˈchərn \

Updated on: 14 Apr 2018

Definition of churn

plural churns

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

See churn defined for English-language learners

See churn defined for kids

Recent Examples of churn from the Web

And the constant churn of staff departures and internal administration discord claimed another victim on Sunday night, as National Security Council spokesman Michael Anton left, just before Bolton takes the reins.

— stephen collinson, CNN, "Crises, confrontations envelop Trump at home and abroad," 9 Apr. 2018
In a changing marketplace that has seen new stores arrive and some close up shop in the past year, the next year should bring even more churn in Charlotte’s cutthroat grocery industry.

— katherine peralta, charlotteobserver, "Amazon and Lidl are creating upheaval for big Charlotte grocers, new report shows | Charlotte Observer," 2 Apr. 2018
Many attendees spoke of grueling working hours, little to no job stability, lack of overtime compensation, burn out and aggressive employee churn, and various other physical and emotional tolls of modern game development.

— nick statt, The Verge, "Game developers look to unions to fix the industry’s exploitative workplace culture," 23 Mar. 2018
The question is, what’s the magnitude of the churn?

— catherine ho, San Francisco Chronicle, "With Cambridge scandal, Facebook faces ‘a speed bump, not a road block’," 23 Mar. 2018
In higher gears, where the stretch from 8000 to 9000 rpm grows to more than a fraction of a second, the churn of its six pistons exactly mimics the characteristic buzz-saw sound of an Airbus A320’s turbofan engines at takeoff.

— james lipman, Car and Driver, "2018 Porsche 911 GT3 PDK Automatic," 23 Mar. 2018
The broader American economy is doing okay right now, with unemployment relatively low — and there’s enough churn in retail right now that other, better-run chains like Costco will be able to hire some of the folks getting pink slips at Toys R Us.

— will bunch, Philly.com, "Vulture hedge-fund capitalism still devouring U.S. jobs. Will we ever do something? | Will Bunch," 20 Mar. 2018
Read: Citigroup Discloses Gender and Racial Pay Gaps, Plans Raises As well as promoting and hiring more women into executive roles, Citigroup hopes to achieve the gender equality target by reducing churn among new mothers.

— Bloomberg.com, "Citigroup Wants More Senior Women at Its Markets Unit in Asia," 18 Mar. 2018
This no-churn keto chocolate ice cream, courtesy of Paola from Gnom Gnom, is an easy-to-make treat.

— blake bakkila, Health.com, "7 Keto-Friendly Recipes People Are Loving on Pinterest," 8 Mar. 2018

These 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.

Origin and Etymology of churn

Middle English chyrne, from Old English cyrin; akin to Old Norse kjarni churn

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

Other Household Terms

cruet, curiosity, duvet, fiasco, sham, taper, valance, whatnot

churn

verb

Definition of churn

transitive verb

1 : to agitate (milk or cream) in a churn in order to make butter

The farmer churns his cream every day.

2 a : 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

intransitive verb

1 : to work a churn (as in making butter)

2 a : 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

See churn defined for English-language learners

Examples of churn in a Sentence

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 of churn from the Web

Today, with the widest media and social-media reach in history, every new workplace shooting jangles the nation’s population from coast to coast — and churns up new calls for better security each time, experts note.

— kevin fagan, San Francisco Chronicle, "Bay Area companies sharpen focus on security after shootings," 8 Apr. 2018
Hurricane Odile churned toward the western coast of Mexico on Sept. 14, 2014, a Category 4 storm with winds powerful enough to flatten homes, bend lampposts and punch windows out of luxury high-rises.

— latimes.com, "Mexico's disaster bonds were meant to provide quick cash after hurricanes and earthquakes. But it often hasn’t worked out that way," 8 Apr. 2018
But the Kennedy machine churned on. Jack Kennedy’s ambition to reach the moon was being realized by Neil Armstrong.

— jake coyle, Detroit Free Press, "Review: ‘Chappaquiddick’ is a profile in cowardice," 5 Apr. 2018
Founded in Chicago in 1981, Ministry helped create the industrial rock genre: churning guitars, robotic bass, dark synthesizes and heavy metal percussion.

— justin jacobs, Indianapolis Star, "‘Eva’ premiere, Brett Eldredge show among top things to do in Indianapolis this April," 4 Apr. 2018
In a flood, water churns up chunks of sediment and spreads into the oxbow.

— adam rogers, WIRED, "Too Much Engineering Has Made Mississippi River Floods Worse," 4 Apr. 2018
Its sprawling health-care and benefits system, which Trump blasted on the campaign trail as a wasteful, inefficient failure, churns away.

— washington post, BostonGlobe.com, "A war inside the VA is paralyzing Trump’s plan to fix veterans’ care," 9 Mar. 2018
Its sprawling health-care and benefits system, which Trump blasted on the campaign trail as a wasteful, inefficient failure, churns away.

— Washington Post, "‘It’s killing the agency’: Ugly power struggle paralyzes Trump’s plan to fix veterans’ care," 9 Mar. 2018
The previous day, the massive winds had churned the ocean up to IMAX proportions, crumbling slabs of icy whitecaps that exploded when the onshore winds threw them onto the rocky coast.

— billy baker, BostonGlobe.com, "When nor’easter’s howl comes, he goes surfing," 20 Mar. 2018

Origin and Etymology of churn

see ¹churn

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

churn Synonyms

CHURN Defined for English Language Learners

churn

noun

Definition of churn for English Language Learners

: a container in which cream is stirred or shaken to make butter

churn

verb

Definition of churn for English Language Learners

: 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

CHURN Defined for Kids

churn

noun \ ˈchərn \

Definition of churn for Students

: a container in which milk or cream is stirred or shaken in making butter

churn

verb

Definition of churn for Students

churned; churning

1 : to stir or shake in a churn (as in making butter)

2 : to stir or shake forcefully

The boat's motor churned up the mucky water.

3 : to feel the effects of an emotion (as fear)

My stomach churned as I stood on the stage.

4 : to move by or as if by forceful stirring action

Steamboats churned up and down the river.

Law Dictionary

churn

transitive verb \ ˈchərn \

legal Definition of churn

: to make (the account of a client) excessively active by frequent purchases and sales primarily in order to generate commissions

Note: Churning is a violation of federal securities laws.

Learn More about churn

See words that rhyme with churn Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for churn Spanish Central: Translation of churn Nglish: Translation of churn for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of churn for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about churn

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churn

Definition of churn

Recent Examples of churn from the Web

Origin and Etymology of churn

Other Household Terms

churn

Definition of churn

Examples of churn in a Sentence

Recent Examples of churn from the Web

Origin and Etymology of churn

churn Synonyms

Synonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

CHURN Defined for English Language Learners

churn

Definition of churn for English Language Learners

churn

Definition of churn for English Language Learners

CHURN Defined for Kids

churn

Definition of churn for Students

churn

Definition of churn for Students

Law Dictionary

churn

legal Definition of churn

Learn More about churn

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