TURBULENT

Pronunciation (US):

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IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does turbulent mean? 

• TURBULENT (adjective)
  The adjective TURBULENT has 2 senses:

1. characterized by unrest or disorder or insubordination

2. (of a liquid) agitated vigorously; in a state of turbulence

  Familiarity information: TURBULENT used as an adjective is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• TURBULENT (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Characterized by unrest or disorder or insubordination

Synonyms:

disruptive; riotous; troubled; tumultuous; turbulent

Context example:

a turbulent and unruly childhood

Similar:

unquiet (characterized by unrest or disorder)

Derivation:

turbulence (a state of violent disturbance and disorder (as in politics or social conditions generally))

Sense 2

Meaning:

(of a liquid) agitated vigorously; in a state of turbulence

Synonyms:

churning; roiled; roiling; roily; turbulent

Context example:

turbulent rapids

Similar:

agitated (physically disturbed or set in motion)

Derivation:

turbulence; turbulency (unstable flow of a liquid or gas)

 Context examples 

The study concludes that the storm in the Great Red Spot produces two kinds of turbulent energy waves that collide and heat the upper atmosphere.

(Jupiter’s Great Red Spot Likely a Massive Heat Source, NASA)

As stars mature, the braking mechanism from magnetic fields more easily slows the spin rate of the thin, outermost layer of big stars than the comparatively thick, turbulent bulk of small stars.

(Kepler Watches Stellar Dancers in the Pleiades Cluster, NASA)

The results revealed vigorous, fire-generated updrafts and strongly turbulent eddies that formed along the fire plume's edges.

(Researchers discover how wildfires create their own weather, National Science Foundation)

This interaction is controlled by turbulent swirls from the upstream dune, which push the downstream dune away.

(Sand dunes can ‘communicate’ with each other, University of Cambridge)

Highly mobile foragers appear to favor turbulent areas because these locations contain particularly abundant food sources.

(Galapagos sea life study highlights importance of biodiversity in the face of climate change, National Science Foundation)

An artifact that results from turbulent flow of body fluids in an imaging field.

(Flow Separation with Recirculation Zones, NCI Thesaurus)

Galaxy formation is turbulent and violent, and the growth of the fledgling massive galaxy billions of years ago perhaps played a role in NGC 1052-DF2's dark-matter deficiency.

(Dark Matter Goes Missing in Oddball Galaxy, NASA)

Scientists study neutrinos, as well as cosmic rays and gamma rays, to understand what is going on in turbulent cosmic environments such as supernovas, black holes and stars.

(NASA’s Fermi Traces Source of Cosmic Neutrino to Monster Black Hole, NASA)

This material gathers into huge turbulent reservoirs of cool, low-density gas, extending more than 30 000 light-years from the galaxy’s star forming region.

(ALMA Finds Huge Hidden Reservoirs of Turbulent Gas in Distant Galaxies, ESO)

Secondly, these early discs were much more turbulent than the spiral galaxies we see in our cosmic neighbourhood.

(Dark Matter Less Influential in Galaxies in Early Universe, ESO)