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shook

1 American  
[shook] / ʃʊk /

verb

  1. simple past tense of shake.

  2. Nonstandard.  a past participle of shake.

adjective

  1. Slang.  Also shook up strongly affected by an event, circumstance, etc.; emotionally unsettled.

    She was so shook she couldn't speak.
shook 2 American  
[shook] / ʃʊk /

noun

  1. a set of staves and headings sufficient for one hogshead, barrel, or the like.

  2. a set of the parts of a box, piece of furniture, or the like, ready to be put together.

  3. a shock of sheaves or the like.

shook 1 British  
/ ʃʊk /

noun

  1. (in timber working) a set of parts ready for assembly, esp of a barrel

  2. a group of sheaves piled together on end; shock

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
shook 2 British  
/ ʃʊk /

verb

  1. the past tense of shake

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. informal  keen on; enthusiastic about

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

What else does shook mean? Shook is the past tense form of shake, used as a slang term to describe feelings ranging from discombobulation and fear to rage and elation, kind of like "all shaken up."

Etymology

Origin of shook1

First recorded in 1890–95, for the adjective

Origin of shook2

First recorded in 1760–70; short for shook cask, variant of shaken cask, one dismounted for shipment

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"It really shook me. For a number of days after it really left me quite shaken. I felt very vulnerable and I don't know who to trust now."

From BBC

As the president shook Wilhite’s hand, he took a look at the suit and deadpanned: “Bold move, son.”

From Los Angeles Times

“Those circumstances, I mean, they shook all of us,” Bhatt said of that period.

From The Wall Street Journal

The walls Vitsik and Auditor hid behind shook with each explosion.

From BBC

The Tartan Army shook the earth as they celebrated Scotland's men qualifying for a first World Cup in 28 years.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.