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noun

churning

Churning (noun) means the act of stirring or agitating something vigorously, especially cream or milk to make butter. Example: “The churning of the cream took almost an hour by hand.”

noun
1
The act of stirring or agitating something vigorously, especially cream or milk to make butter.
"The churning of the cream took almost an hour by hand."
"She could hear the steady churning of the washing machine next door."
2
The batch of butter produced from one round of churning.
"That churning yielded almost two pounds of fresh butter."

How to use churning

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishThe action of mixing or shaking something around and around, or the batch of butter that comes out of doing that to cream.

Memory tip

Outside of dairy-making, "churning" is often used figuratively for anything moving turbulently, like churning seas or a churning stomach.

Common pairings
a churning stomach churning waves the churning of butter

Word forms

churnings plural

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The _____ of the cream took almost an hour by hand.

Rhymes for churning

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Frequently asked questions

What does “churning” mean?

The word “churning” means the act of stirring or agitating something vigorously, especially cream or milk to make butter. In plain terms, the action of mixing or shaking something around and around, or the batch of butter that comes out of doing that to cream.

How do you use “churning” in a sentence?

Here is “churning” used in a sentence: “The churning of the cream took almost an hour by hand.”

What part of speech is “churning”?

“Churning” is a noun.

How many meanings does “churning” have?

“Churning” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: the act of stirring or agitating something vigorously, especially cream or milk to make butter.

Definitions: FreeDict original editorial