vibrate
Americanverb (used without object)
-
vibrates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
vibrated,
past participle, past
-
vibrating
present participle
-
to move rhythmically and steadily to and fro, as a pendulum; oscillate.
-
to move to and fro or up and down quickly and repeatedly; quiver; tremble.
-
(of sounds) to produce or have a quivering or vibratory effect; resound.
- Synonyms:
- echo
-
to thrill, as in emotional response.
-
to move between alternatives or extremes; fluctuate; vacillate.
verb (used with object)
-
vibrates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
vibrated,
past participle, past
-
vibrating
present participle
-
to cause to move rhythmically and steadily to and fro, swing, or oscillate.
-
to cause to move to and fro or up and down quickly and repeatedly; cause to quiver or tremble.
-
to give forth or emit by, or as by, vibration.
-
to measure or indicate by vibration or oscillation.
a pendulum vibrating seconds.
verb
-
to move or cause to move back and forth rapidly; shake, quiver, or throb
-
(intr) to oscillate
-
to send out (a sound) by vibration; resonate or cause to resonate
-
(intr) to waver
-
physics to undergo or cause to undergo an oscillatory or periodic process, as of an alternating current; oscillate
-
rare (intr) to respond emotionally; thrill
Synonym Usage
See shake.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
revibrateverb
-
nonvibratingadjective
-
unvibratedadjective
-
unvibratingadjective
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vibratileadjective
-
vibratingadjective
-
vibratoryadjective
-
vibratinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
vibratesimple
-
vibratessimple
-
have vibratedperfect
-
has vibratedperfect
-
am vibratingprogressive
-
are vibratingprogressive
-
is vibratingprogressive
-
have been vibratingperfect progressive
-
has been vibratingperfect progressive
Past
-
vibratedsimple
-
had vibratedperfect
-
was vibratingprogressive
-
were vibratingprogressive
-
had been vibratingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of vibrate
First recorded in 1610–20; from Latin vibrātus (past participle of vibrāre “to move to and fro”); see -ate 1
Explanation
When you feel something vibrate, it trembles and shakes. A mild earthquake, for example, might make your chandelier vibrate. A hummingbird's wings vibrate, and so does an electric toothbrush. That extremely rapid back-and-forth movement is what happens when something vibrates. Something can also vibrate in a more musical, resonant way — the sound of an organ might vibrate through a church, for example. The root is the Latin word vibratus, which means "move quickly to and fro or shake."
Vocabulary lists containing vibrate
The Circuit
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Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key
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Messenger
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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:
“Nothing beats feeling the ground vibrate, seeing the charting of the wheels and hearing the whistle,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
“You can kind of feel it vibrate when it’s that close to you,” the Los Angeles native said of the impact.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
Because a smaller and lighter stapes can vibrate more rapidly, it can transfer high-frequency sound waves more effectively.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 12, 2026
"Cathy and Heathcliff's passions vibrate through their dress, their surroundings, and everything else within reach, and you leave the cinema quivering on their own private frequency."
From BBC ● Feb. 10, 2026
Kelly was so loud that George could feel the phone vibrate.
From "George" by Alex Gino
Some fans do just that, but the packed stadium vibrates harder with cheers as thousands of phones stay in the air.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
"What happens in any part of this ocean vibrates through all of us," she told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
Nevertheless, Bonnie’s doting parents hope that Lilypad will help Bonnie make friends, oblivious to how the gizmo — and soon, their daughter — vibrates with anxiety.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026
Even if you never bore witness to that outrageous performance, its elemental alchemy vibrates in the band’s most popular songs, each of them calling to us with purpose.
From Salon ● Jun. 7, 2026
The noise vibrates in my chest, and I grin.
From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth
Each sample was then placed on the actuator and vibrated at ultrasonic frequencies.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 20, 2025
They also approached the spiders with a tuning fork that vibrated at the same frequency as the insects’ beating wings.
From Science Magazine ● Dec. 4, 2024
About an hour after the first message, phones again vibrated with a new alert from the Home Front Command, telling people they could leave shelters and protected areas.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2024
People in the stands practically vibrated with it.
From Salon ● Aug. 7, 2024
His voice vibrated, like he was singing, like he was some kind of bootleg Dr. King.
From "The Boy in the Black Suit" by Jason Reynolds
"It then carried on going for a couple of minutes but there was a horrible vibrating sound."
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Conversations stretch for hours without the interruption of a vibrating phone.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026
But the feeling of release as the bowstrings were left vibrating in my arms was palpable, intensely satisfying.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
A vibrating violin behind a fiery curtain and a song about star-crossed planets are among the favourites to win this year's Eurovision Song Contest.
From Barron's ● May 15, 2026
Figure 3.13: The fundamental pitch is produced by the whole string vibrating back and forth.
From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones
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.
