shake-up

1 of 2

noun

: an act or instance of shaking up
specifically : an extensive and often drastic reorganization

shake up

2 of 2

verb

shook up; shaken up; shaking up; shakes up

transitive verb

1
obsolete : chide, scold
2
: to jar by or as if by a physical shock
the collision shook up both drivers
3
: to effect an extensive and often drastic reorganization of

Examples of shake-up in a Sentence

Verb the news that we had failed the auto inspection shook us up
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Russia has jailed a top defense official, the fourth in a month, state media reported on Thursday, expanding President Vladimir V. Putin’s biggest shake-up of his military leadership since the invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago. Anton Troianovski, New York Times, 23 May 2024 That shake-up threatens to undercut Apple’s own lucrative in-house payment system, which generates billions of dollars annually through commissions ranging from 15% to 30% of the purchase amount on digital transactions completed within iPhone apps. Michael Liedtke, Fortune, 23 May 2024
Verb
Namely, how will the possibility of the International Criminal Court issuing arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders shake up a seven-month war, a hostage crisis, and a growing famine? Taylor Luck, The Christian Science Monitor, 22 May 2024 Last month, in an apparent attempt to address employee complaints, the company shook up local management, appointing Federico Kochlowski as chief executive of the German company’s U.S. unit. Jack Ewing, New York Times, 17 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for shake-up 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shake-up.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1847, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1538, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of shake-up was in 1538

Dictionary Entries Near shake-up

Cite this Entry

“Shake-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shake-up. Accessed 6 Jun. 2024.

Kids Definition

shake-up

1 of 2 noun
ˈshā-ˌkəp
: an act or instance of shaking up
especially : a reorganization that has extreme effects
lost their jobs in an office shake-up

shake up

2 of 2 verb
(ˈ)shā-ˈkəp
1
: to jar by or as if by a physical shock
the accident shook up both drivers
the news shook us up
2
: to bring about an extensive reorganization of

More from Merriam-Webster on shake-up

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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