churn definition | Dictionary.com

churn

[churn]

–noun

1.	a container or machine in which cream or milk is agitated to make butter.

2.	any of various containers or machines similar in shape or action to a butter churn, as a device for mixing beverages.

3.	British. a large milk can.

4.	an act of churning stocks by a stockbroker.

–verb (used with object)

5.	to agitate in order to make into butter: to churn cream.

6.	to make (butter) by the agitation of cream.

7.	to shake or agitate with violence or continued motion: The storm churned the sea.

8.	(of a stockbroker) to trade (a customer's securities) excessively in order to earn more in commissions.

–verb (used without object)

9.	to operate a churn.

10.	to move or shake in agitation, as a liquid or any loose matter: The leaves churned along the ground.

11.	(of a stockbroker) to engage in the practice of churning.

—Verb phrase

12.	churn out, to produce mechanically, hurriedly, or routinely: He was hired to churn out verses for greeting cards.

Origin:
bef. 1000; ME chirne (n.), OE cyrne cyr(i)n; c. MLG kerne, ON kjarni, kirna

Related forms:

churn⋅a⋅ble, adjective

churn⋅a⋅bil⋅i⋅ty, noun

churner, noun

Synonyms:
7. whip, toss, convulse.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To churn

churn (chûrn)

n.  A vessel or device in which cream or milk is agitated to separate the oily globules from the caseous and serous parts, used to make butter.
v.   churned, churn·ing, churns

v.   tr.

1. To agitate or stir (milk or cream) in order to make butter.
2. To make by the agitation of milk or cream: churn butter.
To shake or agitate vigorously: wind churning up the piles of leaves. See Synonyms at agitate.
To buy and sell (a client's securities) frequently, especially in order to generate commissions.

v. intr.

To make butter by operating a device that agitates cream or milk.
To move with or produce great agitation: waves churning in the storm; so angry it made my stomach churn.

Phrasal Verb(s):
churn outTo produce in an abundant and automatic manner: churns out four novels a year.

[Middle English chirne, from Old English cyrn, cyrin.]
churn'er n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Churn

Churn\ (ch[^u]rn), n. [OE. chirne, cherne, AS. ceren, cyrin; akin to D. karn, Dan. kierne. See Churn, v. t.] A vessel in which milk or cream is stirred, beaten, or otherwise agitated (as by a plunging or revolving dasher) in order to separate the oily globules from the other parts, and obtain butter.

Churn

Churn\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Churned (ch[^u]rnd); p. pr. & vb. n. Churning.] [OE. chernen, AS. cernan; akin to LG. karnen, G. kernen, D. karnen, Dan. kierne, Sw. k["a]rna, and also to E. corn, kernel, the meaning coming from the idea of extracting the kernel or marrow. See Kernel.]

1. To stir, beat, or agitate, as milk or cream in a churn, in order to make butter.

2. To shake or agitate with violence.

Churned in his teeth, the foamy venom rose. --Addison.

Churn

Churn\, v. i. To perform the operation of churning.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : churn

Spanish: mantequera,

German: das Butterfaß,

Japanese: かく乳器

More Translations »

churn

O.E. cyrin, from P.Gmc. *kernjon, probably akin to cyrnel "kernel," from the grainy appearance of churned cream. Extended verbal senses are from late 17c.

churn

To trade securities very actively in a brokerage account in order to increase brokerage commissions rather than customer profits. Brokers may be tempted to churn accounts because their income is directly related to the volume of trading undertaken by customers. Churning is illegal and unethical; suspected churning should be reported to the brokerage firm's office manager. Also called burn and churn, overtrade.

Main Entry: churn
Pronunciation: 'ch&rn
Function: transitive verb
: 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.

churn

device for making butter. The earliest churns were goatskins or other primitive containers in which cream could be agitated. The dash churn, familiar to farm homes for centuries, consisted of a tall, narrow, nearly cylindrical stone or wood tub fitted with a wooden cover; the cream was agitated by a hand-operated vertical wooden plunger, or dash. Another type, widely used in the 19th century, was shaped like a small barrel and mounted in a framework. Operation of a hand crank caused the barrel to revolve end over end

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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