shake
//ˈʃeɪk//
Forms
- present (v1)
- shake
- past (v2)
- shook
- past participle (v3)
- shaken
- present participle
- shaking
- 3rd person singular
- shakes
- Plural
- shakes
Definitions
1.To cause (something) to move rapidly in opposite directions alternatingly.
- He shook the can of soda for thirty seconds before delivering it to me, so that, when I popped it open, soda went everywhere.
- The earthquake shook the building.
2.To move (one's head) from side to side, especially to indicate refusal, reluctance, or disapproval.
- Shaking his head, he kept repeating “No, no, no”.
3.To move or remove by agitating; to throw off by a jolting or vibrating motion.
4.To disturb emotionally; to shock.
- He was shaken by what had happened.
- Her father’s death shook her terribly.
1.The act of shaking or being shaken; tremulous or back-and-forth motion.
- The cat gave the mouse a shake.
- She replied in the negative, with a shake of her head.
2.A twitch, a spasm, a tremor.
3.A dance popular in the 1960s in which the head, limbs, and body are shaken.
- The snake did the frug, the monkey did the shake. The crowd, mostly young couples, tourists and kids, loved it.
4.A milkshake.
Frequency
Overall
Common· #1131
By learning goal
- Everyday conversation
- Uncommon
- General reading & writing
- Uncommon
- Academic
- Rare
- Literature
- Common
Etymology
From Middle English schaken, from Old English sċeacan, sċacan (“to shake”), from Proto-West Germanic *skakan, from Proto-Germanic *skakaną (“to shake, swing, escape”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)keg-, *(s)kek- (“to jump, move”).