tremble

[trem-buhl]

See more synonyms for tremble on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object), trem·bled, trem·bling.

to shake involuntarily with quick, short movements, as from fear, excitement, weakness, or cold; quake; quiver.
to be troubled with fear or apprehension.
(of things) to be affected with vibratory motion.

to be tremulous, as light or sound: His voice trembled.

noun

the act of trembling.
a state or fit of trembling.
trembles, (used with a singular verb)
1. Pathology.milk sickness.
2. Veterinary Pathology.a toxic condition of cattle and sheep caused by the eating of white snakeroot and characterized by muscular tremors.

Origin of tremble

1275–1325; Middle English trem(b)len (v.) < Old French trembler < Vulgar Latin *tremulāre, derivative of Latin tremulus tremulous

Related formstrem·bling·ly, adverbun·trem·bling, adjectiveun·trem·bling·ly, adverb

Synonyms for tremble

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1. shudder. See shake. 3. oscillate.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for tremble

quiver, throb, wobble, shudder, shiver, flutter, totter, palpitate, teeter, jar, quake, rock, tremor, quaver, oscillate, jitter

Examples from the Web for tremble

Contemporary Examples of tremble

The city, the state, the whole land, were ready to rise and tremble before the Pallid Mask.
Read ‘The King in Yellow,’ the ‘True Detective’ Reference That’s the Key to the Show
Robert W. Chambers
February 20, 2014
He began to read, raising his eyebrows with a puzzled, whimsical air, which made me tremble with suppressed anger.
Read ‘The King in Yellow,’ the ‘True Detective’ Reference That’s the Key to the Show
Robert W. Chambers
February 20, 2014
Who is this woman going toe-to-toe with Wintour, when all others appear to tremble, and who excels because of it?
Vogue Creative Director Grace Coddington’s Memoir Offers Few Revelations
Robin Givhan
November 20, 2012
I just tremble when I think about how tremendous this moment is.
Before the Rapture
Bryan Curtis
May 19, 2011
During this time, the ground continued to tremble, albeit less violently.
My Earthquake Experience in Tokyo
Andrew Pateras
March 11, 2011

Historical Examples of tremble

If they tremble down the fine-skinned cheek, let us avert our gaze.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
Humans are funniest when they weep and tremble before, like you say, 'the facts in the case.'
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
Just then, up came my father, with a sternness in his looks that made me tremble.
Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
It squeaked under his weight, he felt the rungs bow and tremble.
Way of the Lawless
Max Brand
There are ghosts whom I tremble to meet, and cannot think of without a shudder.
Other Tales and Sketches
Nathaniel Hawthorne

British Dictionary definitions for tremble

tremble

verb (intr)

to vibrate with short slight movements; quiver
to shake involuntarily, as with cold or fear; shiver
to experience fear or anxiety

noun

the act or an instance of trembling

Derived Formstrembling, adjectivetremblingly, adverbtrembly, adjective

Word Origin for tremble

C14: from Old French trembler, from Medieval Latin tremulāre, from Latin tremulus quivering, from tremere to quake

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

Word Origin and History for tremble

c.1300, "shake from fear, cold, etc.," from Old French trembler "tremble, fear" (11c.), from Vulgar Latin *tremulare (source of Italian tremolare, Spanish temblar), from Latin tremulus "trembling, tremulous," from tremere "to tremble, shiver, quake," from PIE *trem- "to tremble" (cf. Greek tremein "to shiver, tremble," Lithuanian trimu "to chase away," Old Church Slavonic treso "to shake," Gothic þramstei "grasshopper"). A native word for this was Old English bifian. Related: Trembled; trembling. The noun is recorded from c.1600.