quake

American  

[kweyk] / kweɪk /

verb (used without object)

quakes, present (3rd person singular) quaked, past participle, past quaking present participle

1. (of persons) to shake or tremble from cold, weakness, fear, anger, or the like.

   He spoke boldly even though his legs were quaking.

   Synonyms:

   shudder

2. (of things) to shake or tremble, as from shock, internal convulsion, or instability.

   The earth suddenly began to quake.

   Synonyms:

   quiver

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noun

1. an earthquake.

2. a trembling or tremulous agitation.

quake British  

/ kweɪk /

verb

1. to shake or tremble with or as with fear

2. to convulse or quiver, as from instability

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noun

1. the act or an instance of quaking

2. informal short for earthquake

Synonym Usage

See shiver ¹.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• quakingly
  adverb
• unquaking
  adjective

Conjugated Forms

Present

• have quaked
  perfect
• has quaked
  perfect 3rd person singular
• am quaking
  progressive 1st person singular
• is quaking
  progressive 3rd person singular
• have been quaking
  perfect progressive
• quaking
  participle
• quakes
  singular 3rd person
• has been quaking
  perfect progressive 3rd person singular
• are quaking
  progressive

Past

• had quaked
  perfect
• had been quaking
  perfect progressive
• was quaking
  progressive singular
• were quaking
  progressive plural
• quaked
  simple
• quaked
  participle

Future

• will quake
  simple
• will have quaked
  perfect
• will be quaking
  progressive
• will have been quaking
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of quake

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English cwacian “to shake, tremble”

Explanation

When you quake, you tremble and shiver. A scary sound in a dark basement might make you quake. To quake is to move rapidly back and forth, so quickly that the movement is almost a vibration. If you've ever felt the floor quake during an actual earthquake, you know the fluttery, shaking kind of movement. A person can quake with fear, and a building can quake during a wind storm. You can also use the word quake as a noun, to describe the feeling itself. The Old English root is cwacian, or "tremble or clatter of teeth."