quiver
1 Americanverb (used with or without object)
-
quivers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
quivered,
past participle, past
-
quivering
present participle
noun
noun
-
a case for holding or carrying arrows.
-
the arrows in such a case.
verb
noun
noun
Synonym Usage
See shake.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
quiversimple
-
quiverssimple
-
have quiveredperfect
-
has quiveredperfect
-
am quiveringprogressive
-
are quiveringprogressive
-
is quiveringprogressive
-
have been quiveringperfect progressive
-
has been quiveringperfect progressive
Past
-
quiveredsimple
-
had quiveredperfect
-
was quiveringprogressive
-
were quiveringprogressive
-
had been quiveringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of quiver1
First recorded in 1480–90; origin uncertain; compare Middle Dutch quiveren “to tremble”
Origin of quiver2
1250–1300; Middle English < Anglo-French quiveir, variant of Old French quivre; perhaps < Germanic; compare Old English cocer quiver
Explanation
Scaredy cats around the globe know that quivering is a trembling, shaking motion. A cold gust of wind might make you quiver, as would an icy glare from the abominable snowman. The verb to quiver means to shudder, wobble, or vibrate, often from fear. But the noun quiver? It's actually the carrying case for your arrows, just the kind of thing Robin Hood would have strapped to his back. So imagine one of his arrows sailing through the air, hitting a tree with a hearty whack!, and then quivering there for a few seconds.
Vocabulary lists containing quiver
Unit 1: Telling Details
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"Seventh Grade" by Gary Soto
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"Of Mice and Men"
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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.
See Examples For:
I close my eyes and, suddenly, my legs wobble and my ankles quiver.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
She conjures a bewitching onscreen presence that many of her contemporaries could only dream of, pulling the viewer’s gaze with a single glare from her steely eyes or the quiver of her chin.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
That wrist is how Alcaraz sculpts that spectacular drop shot that makes opponents quiver at the knees and would make Harry Hopman cry.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
As Pierce sees it, a 10% cap is “one of the few arrows left in the quiver for the White House really struggling to address the affordability crisis.”
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 19, 2026
The poor Earthworm began to quiver all over with fright.
From "James and the Giant Peach" by Roald Dahl
His lower lip quivers; there’s an expression on his face that my husband and I used to call “sad baby.”
From Slate ● May 10, 2026
On a recent evening, Karuk men and boys gathered by the Klamath wearing traditional regalia and holding spears, bows and quivers made of animal skins and filled with willow branches.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2024
With calculations based on linear algebra, the research team demonstrated that -- analogous to radioactivity in atomic nuclei -- a magnetic quiver can decay into a more stable state or fission into two separate quivers.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 3, 2024
Mr McKeown, who is 37, was taken to Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, where they discovered he had suffered a ventricular fibrillation cardiac arrest, which is when the heart quivers instead of pumping normally.
From BBC ● Dec. 23, 2023
Instead, my chin quivers and I turn away.
From "The Running Dream" by Wendelin Van Draanen
His voice quivered as he explained that his personal commitment to the cause is for the future of his 15-year-old son, Matthew.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026
His lips quivered as he held back tears.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
While the video played, Doncic’s lip quivered as tears pooled in the corners of his eyes, his emotion at its most visible.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 9, 2025
His hands shook and voice quivered at times.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 11, 2023
The gun quivered in his hand ever so slightly.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
But Rembrandt’s eyes, mouth and cheeks turn toward and address us, as if his quivering lips might speak.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
The translucence of Irene’s topmost layer is gorgeously done; so, too, are her insides, which recall the tornado in “The Wizard of Oz” trapped in quivering gelatin.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
Big eyes quivering, he is so excited to share a new update.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
Be fretful, be anxious, be a quivering wreck about what might be in America, but keep perspective, too.
From BBC ● Mar. 31, 2026
Everything in the courtyard shudders for a moment, scarves fluttering despite the lack of any breeze, the fabric of the tents quivering.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
