quake

UK/kweɪk/

quake noun: a trembling or shaking.

Noun

quake (plural quakes)

A trembling or shaking.
- We felt a quake in the apartment every time the train went by.
An earthquake, a trembling of the ground with force.
- California is plagued by quakes; there are a few minor ones almost every month.
- Well, everybody talks about the California quakes
  But the first time I ever felt the earth shake
  Was in Miami, when Amy touched me.1985, “Miami, My Amy”, in L.A. to Miami, performed by Keith Whitley
(figuratively) Something devastating, like a strong earthquake.
- But HS1 was more exposed to the COVID quake than most given its inherent reliance on international travel, which had collapsed, leaving cross-Channel operator Eurostar stacked with millions of debt.2024 January 24, Dyan Perry talks to Nick Brodrick, “The industry has given me so much”, in RAIL, number 1001, page 44

Verb

quake (third-person singular simple present quakes, present participle quaking, simple past and past participle quaked or (archaic) quoke or (obsolete) quook)

(intransitive) To tremble or shake.
- I felt the ground quaking beneath my feet.
- Dorus threw Pamela behind a tree; where she stood quaking like the partridge on which the hawk is even ready to seize.a. 1587, Philippe Sidnei [i.e., Philip Sidney], “(please specify the folio)”, in [Fulke Greville; Matthew Gwinne; John Florio], editors, The Countesse of Pembrokes Arcadia [The New Arcadia], London...
(figuratively, intransitive) To be in a state of fear, shock, amazement, etc., such as might cause one to tremble.
- Turning back, then, toward the basement staircase, she began to grope her way through blinding darkness, but had taken only a few uncertain steps when, of a sudden, she stopped short and for a little stood like a stricken thing, quite motionless save that she quaked to her very marrow in the grasp...1914 November, Louis Joseph Vance, “An Outsider […]”, in Munsey’s Magazine, volume LIII, number II, New York, N.Y.: The Frank A[ndrew] Munsey Company, […], published 1915, →OCLC, chapter III...
- If Cupid have not spent all his quiver in / Venice, thou wilt quake for this shortly.1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...

Proper noun capitalized: Quake

Quake

The 99th sura (chapter) of the Qur'an.

quake meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Urdu and Bengali

quake in Urdu

کپکپاہٹ, تھرتھراہٹ, زلزلہ, ہلانا, ہلنا, کانپنا

quake in Bengali

quake, shaking: দর dor

More languagesFewer languages

quake in Malayalam: കമ്പം kampaṁ
quake in Kannada: ನಡುಗು, ಅದುರು
quake in Sinhala: තැතිගන්නවා tætigannawā
quake in Arabic: اِقْشَعَرَّ iqšaʕarra

Examples of quake in a sentence

The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burnt at his presence.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Nahum 1:5:
The head of the Environmental Protection Agency quakes with mirth at his own punch line.2004, David Mitchell, “Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery”, in Cloud Atlas, →ISBN, page 130:
Now could I drink hot blood / And do such bitter business as the bitter day / Would quake to look on.c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies...
Who honours not his father, Henry the fifth, that made all France to quake, Shake he his weapon at us, and pass by.1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Sixt, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, &...

All 39 example sentences with quake

Forms of quake

Noun
plural	quakes
Verb
third-person singular present	quakes
present participle	quaking
past participle	quaked
past	quaked
past participle (archaic)	quoke
past (archaic)	quoke
past participle (obsolete)	quook
past (obsolete)	quook

Plural of quake: quakes

Origin of quake

From Middle English quaken, from Old English cwacian (“to quake, tremble, chatter”), from Proto-Germanic *kwakōną (“to shake, quiver, tremble”), itself likely of imitative origin. Related to Old English cweċċan (“to shake, swing, move, vibrate, shake off, give up”) (see quitch), Dutch kwakkelen (“to ail, be ailing”), German Quackelei (“chattering”), Danish kvakle (“to bungle”), Latin vexō (“toss, shake violently, jostle, vex”), Irish bogadh (“a move, movement, shift, change”).

Words formed from quake

Phrases with quake

Words that rhyme with quake

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about quake

What does quake mean?: Quake means a trembling or shaking.
What is quake in Hindi?: Quake in Hindi is काँपना (kā̃pnā). See Quake meaning in Hindi.
How do you use quake in a sentence?: The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burnt at his presence.
What part of speech is quake?: Quake can be a noun, a verb or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce quake?: Quake is pronounced /kweɪk/ (UK).
What is the plural of quake?: The plural of quake is quakes.

Words near quake in the dictionary

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-quake.ogg.

Cite this entry: “quake.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/quake. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.