1
as in to shudder
to make a series of small irregular or violent movements
the bus rattled and shook as it barreled down a rutted road
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in to avoid
to get or keep away from (as a responsibility) through cleverness or trickery
we shook our pursuers by cutting through the abandoned lot
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in minute
a very small space of time
I'll be there in two shakes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in shivers
shakes plural
a sense of panic or extreme nervousness
I get the shakes every time I hear her voice
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in quake
a shaking of the earth
the shake was a modest 3.1 on the Richter scale
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shake
Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 12 Jan. 2026
In 2024, Disney beat down a proxy challenge by billionaire activist investor Nelson Peltz, whose Trian Partners ran two candidate for election to the Disney board — himself and former Mouse executive Jay Rasulo, to shake things up.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 12 Jan. 2026
Jillian Kubala, Health, 8 Jan. 2026
Tear open the wrapper, give them a shake, and tuck them into a pocket or glove.
—Ashlea Halpern, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shake
Verb
Only weeks earlier, the city had been shaken by the murder of Caroline Isenberg, a recent Harvard graduate and an aspiring actress who was attacked and dragged to the rooftop of her West End Avenue apartment building by Emmanuel Torres, the twenty-two-year-old son of its superintendent.
—Noun
Unfortunately, many premade and made-to-order smoothies and protein shakes contain a lot of calories and sugar.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for shake
Verb
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East Denver sushi fans shuddered in late December when Okinawa Japanese Cuisine, a mainstay on Colfax Avenue since 2010, closed and boarded up its doors with brown paper.—
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The deference with which that body has bowed to presidential fiat would make Page and William Maclay shudder.—
Verb
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To avoid this dilemma, my aunt always travels with a portable power bank like this slim option from Anker.—
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Learn how to properly thaw frozen pipes, and how to avoid them in the first place.—
Noun
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Tied at 19, the Chiefs got the ball back with four minutes left, with the chance to march for a game-winning field goal.—
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There can be 30 minutes of small waves before a sneaker wave strikes.—
Noun
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For more cold-climate shivers also see Finnish Weird, a quirky and often surprisingly spooky literary trove from the lands of the midnight sun.—
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And at the same time, while the East shivers, much of the West will bask under unusually mild to even warm weather.—
Noun
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These aftershocks are usually less violent than the main quake, but not always.—
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Those who felt the quake are encouraged to report it via the USGS Felt Report form.—
Verb
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Aisha jerked and opened her eyes.—
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That jerking motion, combined with detergent and water, loosens dirt from the surfaces of clothing.—
Verb
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Davis faces three counts of first-degree assault and a single count each of second-degree manslaughter, evading responsibility involving a death, reckless driving and failure to drive in the proper lane.—
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Ashton Hill, 17, was charged with discharge of a firearm in certain municipalities, evading arrest, riot participation, possession of marijuana under two ounces in a drug-free zone and possession of CS PG2 under one gram.—
Noun
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Digoxin Digoxin is used to treat heart failure and certain types of irregular heartbeats.—
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World-first findings on coffee and irregular heartbeat University of Adelaide and University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) researchers led a randomized clinical trial of 200 adults from Australia, the US and Canada with atrial fibrillation (AF) to test coffee's impact on irregular heartbeats.—
Cite this Entry
“Shake.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shake. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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