tremble

[ trem-buhl ]

/ ˈtrɛm bəl /

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See synonyms for: tremble / trembled / trembles / trembling 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)

Pathology. milk sickness.
Veterinary Pathology. a toxic condition of cattle and sheep caused by the eating of white snakeroot and characterized by muscular tremors.

OTHER WORDS FOR tremble

1 shudder.

3 oscillate.

See synonyms for tremble on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of tremble

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English trem(b)len (verb), from Old French trembler, from Vulgar Latin *tremulāre, derivative of Latin tremulustremulous

synonym study for tremble

1. See shake.

OTHER WORDS FROM tremble

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

Words nearby tremble

trellis, trellised, trelliswork, Trematoda, trematode, tremble, trembler, trembles, trembling poplar, trembly, tremendous

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use tremble in a sentence

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|DAILY BEAST
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|DAILY BEAST
But it was also the kind of determination that made tyrants tremble, even in the closing days of her time as prime minister.
British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s Lasting Legacy|Christopher Dickey|April 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST
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|DAILY BEAST

I just tremble when I think about how tremendous this moment is.
Before the Rapture|Bryan Curtis|May 19, 2011|DAILY BEAST
She looked both as she permitted her full red mouth to tremble and his arms to take sudden possession of her.
Ancestors|Gertrude Atherton
Softly tremble in the delicate blue mist and the azure spirals from his old Virginia clay—the domes of a sea-bathed city.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
From time to time I felt my companion's arm tremble convulsively, as if he shivered from head to feet.
Camille (La Dame aux Camilias)|Alexandre Dumas, fils
At seven o'clock, a horrible din makes you start up in bed and tremble from head to foot.
Friend Mac Donald|Max O'Rell
Aunt Harriet began to tremble, and Sara Lee went over and put her young arms about her.
The Amazing Interlude|Mary Roberts Rinehart

British Dictionary definitions for tremble

tremble

/ (ˈtrɛmbəl) /

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 forms of tremble

trembling, 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

tremble

OTHER WORDS FOR tremble

Origin of tremble

synonym study for tremble

OTHER WORDS FROM tremble

Words nearby tremble

Words related to tremble

How to use tremble in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for tremble

Derived forms of tremble

Word Origin for tremble