shudder
Americanverb (used without object)
noun
verb
noun
Related Words
See shiver 1.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of shudder
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English shodderen (verb) (cognate with German schaudern, from Low German ), frequentative of Old English scūdan “to tremble”; see -er 6
Explanation
A shudder is an involuntary vibration, usually in your body, or the shaking itself. A cold breeze or an unpleasant memory might make you shudder. A shudder isn't always a bad thing. It can mean a pleasurable sensation or tingle that goes through your body, like a shudder of excitement you feel when you see your favorite star on the street. As a verb, shudder means to shake and shiver. Being really cold or seeing something that scares you — a ghost! — can make you shudder. The phrase "shudder to think" means just the thought of something upsets you enough to shudder.
Vocabulary lists containing shudder
The Lingo of Body Language
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Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 1
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Unit 4: Powerful Openings
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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.
An omen among omens: Mid-dog-walk that day, I spot a onesie that reads “Milk Drunk” and shudder at the impulse to recruit our newborns into low-key bacchanalia.
From Slate • May 10, 2026
Millions with so-called straight jobs shudder at their steady devaluation in the face of artificial intelligence.
From Salon • May 4, 2026
A 1970s-style outcome, or anything close to it, would have been enough to make anyone shudder — but especially retirees and others living on fixed or semi-fixed incomes.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 8, 2026
Liu cast an envious eye toward Trump’s ability to make the world shudder over U.S. tariffs, which he said was the result of dollar-wielding American consumers’ buying power.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 28, 2025
The memory of him made her shudder, and no matter what she did to try to banish him, he wouldn’t go.
From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack
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.
