shake

1. verb

1)

the whole building shook

Syn:

vibrate, tremble, quiver, quake, shiver, shudder, jiggle, wobble, rock, sway; convulse

2)

she shook the bottle

Syn:

jiggle, joggle, agitate

3)

he shook his stick at them

Syn:

brandish, wave, flourish, swing, wield

4)

the look in his eyes really shook her

Syn:

upset, distress, disturb, unsettle, disconcert, discompose, disquiet, unnerve, trouble, throw off balance, agitate, fluster; shock, alarm, frighten, scare, worry; informal rattle

Ant:

soothe

5)

this will shake their confidence

Syn:

weaken, undermine, damage, impair, harm; reduce, diminish, decrease

Ant:

strengthen

2. noun

1)

he gave his coat a shake

Syn:

jiggle, joggle

2)

a shake of his fist

Syn:

flourish, brandish, wave

3) (shakes)

it gives me the shakes

Syn:

tremors, delirium tremens; informal DTs, jitters, the creeps, the shivers, willies, heebie-jeebies, the jim-jams

•

- in two shakes of a lamb's tail

- no great shakes

- shake a leg

- shake off

- shake up

••

shake, quake, quiver, shiver, shudder, tremble

Does a cool breeze make you shiver, quiver, shudder, or tremble? All of these verbs describe vibrating, wavering, or oscillating movements that, in living creatures, are often involuntary expressions of strain or discomfort. Shake, which refers to abrupt forward-and-backward, side-to-side, or up-and-down movements, is different from the others in that it can be done to a person or object as well as by one (shake a can of paint; shake visibly while lifting a heavy load). Tremble applies specifically to the slight and rapid shaking motion the human body makes when it is nervous, frightened, or uneasy (his hands trembled when he picked up the phone). To shiver is to make a similar movement with the entire body, but the cause is usually cold or fear (shiver in the draft from an open door). Quiver suggests a rapid and almost imperceptible vibration resulting from disturbed or irregular surface tension; it refers more often to things (the leaves quivered in the breeze), although people may quiver when they're under emotional tension (her lower lip quivered and her eyes were downcast). Shudder suggests a more intense shaking, usually in response to something horrible or revolting (shudder at the thought of eating uncooked meat). Quake implies a violent upheaval or shaking, similar to what occurs during an earthquake (the boy's heart quaked at his father's approach).