Word.ws English Dictionary

giving one's head a shake

giving one's head a shake is the present participle and gerund of give one's head a shake.

Meaning of give one's head a shake

Verb

give one's head a shake (third-person singular simple present gives one's head a shake, present participle giving one's head a shake, simple past gave one's head a shake, past participle given one's head a shake)

  1. (Canada, idiomatic) To reassess the common sense of one's behaviour, ideas, etc.
    • If you're thinking about topping your burger with ketchup, mustard, relish and perhaps a couple of pickle slices, you might want to "give your head a shake."2009 August 20, Joanne Chianello, “New program asks you to pass on the sodium”, in The Windsor Star

Questions about giving one's head a shake

What is giving one's head a shake the present participle and gerund of?
Giving one's head a shake is the present participle and gerund of give one's head a shake.

Words near giving one's head a shake in the dictionary

  1. giving one enough rope
  2. giving one the lie in one's throat
  3. giving one the mitten
  4. giving one's all
  5. giving one's best
  6. giving one's head a shake
  7. giving one's left nut
  8. giving one's notice
  9. giving one's right arm
  10. giving one's word
  11. giving oneself airs

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: giving one's head a shake (page history and authors); give one's head a shake (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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