quake

1 of 2

verb

ˈkwāk 

quaked; quaking

intransitive verb

1

: to shake or vibrate usually from shock or instability

2

: to tremble or shudder usually from cold or fear

quake

2 of 2

noun

: an instance of shaking or trembling (as of the earth or moon)

especially : earthquake

Synonyms

Verb

• agitate
• bucket
• convulse
• jerk
• jiggle
• joggle
• jolt
• jounce
• judder [chiefly British]
• quiver
• shake
• shudder
• vibrate
• wobble
• wabble

Noun

• earthquake
• shake
• temblor
• tremor

Examples of quake in a Sentence

Verb

She was quaking with rage.

The explosion made the whole house quake.

Noun

the quake registered 6.5 on the Richter scale, causing widespread damage

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Cosmetics continues to leave the entire beauty industry quaking in its boots. —Olivia Cigliano, WWD, 5 July 2024

Distributed acoustic sensing — DAS — picks up tremors from volcanoes, quaking ice and deep-sea faults, as well as traffic rumbles and whale calls. —Big Think, 24 June 2024

Noun

The quake hit 8 kilometers (5 miles) west of Atiquipa, about 600 kilometers (372 miles) south of the capital Lima. —Helen Regan, CNN, 28 June 2024

The 6-mile deep quake hit 2 miles from Highland Park at 5:07 a.m. Monday, June 24, according to the USGS. —Don Sweeney, Sacramento Bee, 24 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Old English cwacian

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

quake

1 of 2 verb

ˈkwāk 

quaked; quaking

1

: to shake or vibrate usually from shock or lack of stability

2

: to tremble or shudder usually from cold or fear

quake

2 of 2 noun

: a shaking or trembling

especially : earthquake