shakeout
[ sheyk-out ]
/ ˈʃeɪkˌaʊt /
noun
an elimination or winnowing out of some competing businesses, products, etc., as a result of intense competition in a market of declining sales or rising standards of quality.
a rapid decline in the values of certain securities sold in stock exchanges or the like.
RELATED WORDS
decline, stagnation, collapse, slump, slide, inflation, downturn, bankruptcy, unemployment, deflation, turmoil, disturbance, explosion, disaster, tumult, eruption, temblor, disruption, revolution, cataclysm
Nearby words
- shake-out,
- shake-up,
- shakedown,
- shaken,
- shaken baby syndrome,
- shaker,
- shaker heights,
- shakerism,
- shakers,
- shakespeare
Origin of shakeout
First recorded in 1890–95; noun use of verb phrase shake out
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for shakeout
The signs of a shakeout are evident beyond the bestseller list.
shakeout
also shake-out, "business upheaval," 1895, from verbal phrase; see shake (v.) + out (adv.).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper