1
as in shudder
an instance of shaking involuntarily with fear or cold
the prisoner experienced a sudden shiver when confronted with the sight of the dark basement
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in butterflies
shivers plural
a sense of panic or extreme nervousness
looking down from the window ledge sent shivers up my spine
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shiver
David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 10 Apr. 2025
Despite her young age, even a gentle whisper of Lana’s name on the scene is enough to send shivers of excitement down the spines of New Yorkers from the clubs of Brooklyn to Manhattan.
—EW.com, 8 Jan. 2025
Richard Brody, New Yorker, 17 Apr. 2025
Father DeLuca finds Roman, shivering in an alley from the fever resulting from his infected gunshot.
—Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 8 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for shiver
Noun
Twangy bass lines thick enough to saw down a redwood tree are shredded with shivers of electric guitar to create a blues sound that cuts a hole straight through the decades.
—David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 10 Apr. 2025
Despite her young age, even a gentle whisper of Lana’s name on the scene is enough to send shivers of excitement down the spines of New Yorkers from the clubs of Brooklyn to Manhattan.
—EW.com, 8 Jan. 2025
Verb
There are quick but indelible glimpses of signs for the whites-only ticket booth, waiting room, and rest room; when Stack, seeing a white woman nearby, orders Sammie to avert his eyes and walk away, the screen shivers with the ambient terror underlying the banalities of segregation.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 17 Apr. 2025
Father DeLuca finds Roman, shivering in an alley from the fever resulting from his infected gunshot.
—Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 8 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for shiver
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shiver
Noun
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In some scenes, without much alteration in tone, reality slips away with a shudder.—
David Denby,
New Yorker,
23 May 2025
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As the low drone grew louder, individual voices peeled off with microtonal shudders and ululations, and foghorn-like trombone blasts wormed their way through the vocal texture.—
Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim,
New York Times,
1 May 2025
Verb
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Nearby on the floor, O'Hara trembles and begs for her life.—
Matt Cabral,
EW.com,
1 June 2025
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More recently, Trump announced 50% tariffs on goods from the European Union last Friday, sending investors trembling during the long holiday weekend, before walking back on the decision Sunday evening.—
Lee Ying Shan,Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
29 May 2025
Verb
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Long connected off Brooklyn’s Carl Erskine at Forbes Field. 1968 — The American League announced the league will be split into two divisions.—
Houston Mitchell,
Los Angeles Times,
28 May 2025
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In his four years split between Jackson State and Colorado, the son of the legendary Deion Sanders threw for 14,347 yards, 134 touchdowns, and 27 interceptions, while completing 70.1 percent of his attempts.—
Evan Massey,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 May 2025
Verb
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In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) shakes hands with North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (R) after a signing ceremony following their bilateral talks at Kumsusan state residence in Pyongyang, on June 19, 2024.—
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 May 2025
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For me, a perfect beach bag starts with a lightweight, oversized tote that’s easy to shake the sand out of—preferably a mesh or water-resistant style.—
Alesandra Dubin,
Travel + Leisure,
28 May 2025
Verb
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There’s quivering and shoving, growling and purring.—
Sara Netzley,
EW.com,
24 Apr. 2025
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The journalist raised her hand, and her voice quivered in seeming alarm as the 6.2-magnitude quake shook Istanbul shortly before 1 p.m. local time on Wednesday, April 23.—
Anna Lazarus Caplan,
People.com,
23 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Tornadoes can tear down a home and hurricanes can flood entire towns.—
Thomas E. Weber,
Time,
6 June 2025
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In 2023, Gloria abandoned an unpopular plan to implement Senate Bill 10, which would have allowed a single-family home to be torn down and replaced with a new structure of up to three stories with up to 10 units in much of the city.—
Phillip Molnar,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 June 2025
Verb
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Mountains rise, volcanoes spew, and Earth itself quakes as the crust constantly remakes itself in the ceaseless cycle of plate tectonics.—
Elise Cutts,
Scientific American,
13 May 2025
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The man and his family were in their yard when the air quaked from a massive boom.—
Eric Adler,
Kansas City Star,
17 Apr. 2025
Verb
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And any illusion of stability in the garage has been vaporized by legal fumes.—
Greg Engle,
Forbes.com,
5 June 2025
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Some of these droplets vaporize into aluminum oxide aerosol, while others scatter and cool down, eventually drifting to the ground in the form of nano- and micrometer-sized bits of aluminum.—
Tereza Pultarova,
Space.com,
5 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shiver.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shiver. Accessed 11 Jun. 2025.
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