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
As part of the unexpected leadership shake-up, Amanda Kelso, who has served on the institute’s board of trustees for four years, has been named acting CEO, taking over the reins from Vicente after just two and a half years in the role. Josh Rottenberg, Los Angeles Times, 22 Mar. 2024 Production for The White Lotus season three is currently underway in Thailand, but there’s been a bit of a casting shake-up. Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 18 Mar. 2024 In a generally anodyne interview with government propagandist Dmitry Kiselyov, Putin evaded speculation about whether, for instance, a government shake-up might be expected after the election. Nathan Hodge, CNN, 18 Mar. 2024 The activist investor Elliott Management, which previously led shake-ups at Salesforce and Pinterest, took a $1 billion stake in Match Group in January, a sign that Wall Street sees an opportunity for growth. J. Edward Moreno, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2024 The great shake-up in cable TV continues, with Warner Bros. Discovery‘s TruTV the latest channel to be overhauled. Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Mar. 2024 Palestinian Authority gets a shake-up, but Abbas clings to power Abbas and his predecessor, the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, are depicted together in a mural overlooking the training center. Loveday Morris, Washington Post, 5 Mar. 2024 How will Vikrant survive this web of lies, greed and murder? Showrunner: Sidharth Sengupta Cast: Tahir Raj Bhasin, Anchal Singh, Shweta Tripathi, Gurmeet Chaudhary Fabulous Lives vs. Bollywood Wives Release Date: TBC Logline: The cozy world of the Bollywood Wives is in for a shake-up. Patrick Brzeski, The Hollywood Reporter, 29 Feb. 2024 Previous reports show this figure at a lower $84 trillion, but nonetheless confirms a shake-up in the foundations of spending power across the globe. Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 29 Feb. 2024
Verb
After all, Doda delivered herself here to shimmy topless, and in being the first to do so, shook up 1960s culture as well. Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024 Related article Vietnam names new president as corruption crackdown shakes up top leadership Foreign investors and diplomats have repeatedly blamed the campaign for slowing down decisions in a country which is already grappling with cumbersome bureaucracy. Reuters, CNN, 20 Mar. 2024 Last month, grandchildren of Walt Disney and his brother Roy O. Disney issued open letters criticizing the activist investors’ campaigns threatening to shake up the Disney board and threw their support behind Iger and the current board. Todd Spangler, Variety, 19 Mar. 2024 The Disruptors is a series done each Women’s History Month that highlights Black women shaking up industries and spaces we’re commonly not found in, and opening doors for other Black women and girls in the process. Jazmine Denise Thompson, Essence, 13 Mar. 2024 That’s critical for any organization that’s serious about shaking up the business model in a traditional industry. Christopher Marquis, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024 In the summer of 2015, Ukraine’s president, Petro Poroshenko, shook up the domestic service and installed an ally to replace Mr. Nalyvaichenko, the C.I.A.’s trusted partner. Michael Schwirtz, New York Times, 25 Feb. 2024 The league is shaking up NFL Network’s morning football talk show, Good Morning Football, moving production from New York to Los Angeles, and plotting a two-hour extension of the series, which will be sold in syndication. Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Mar. 2024 Steve Garvey, a late entrant to the race, prevails – thanks to Schiff Garvey’s late entry into the primary significantly shook up the dynamics of the contest in October of last year when the race consisted of mainly high-profile Democrats. Rachel Barber, USA TODAY, 6 Mar. 2024

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 28 Mar. 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

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