quake
/kweɪk
/verb [no object]
1(Especially of the earth) shake or tremble: the rumbling vibrations set the whole valley quaking...
- The media spoke rapturously of the ‘column of steel’ that was moving north at breakneck speed, of the earth quaking beneath the weight of the treads of mighty tanks driving forward relentlessly.
- The trees trembled, the rocks quaked and all the animals fled in alarm.
- But just as she was about to strike, the ground began to tremble and quake, knocking her off-balance, but she managed to regain her footing.
Synonyms
shake, tremble, quiver, shiver, shudder, sway, rock, wobble, move, heave, convulse
1.1(Of a person) shake or shudder with fear: those words should have them quaking in their boots...
- Though, suddenly, inside she was quaking with fear.
- I am quaking with all-encompassing fear at the prospect, an act that may help to save me by keeping my body temperature up.
- What is it about religion that leaves people quaking in their otherwise creative shoes?
Synonyms
tremble, shake, shake with fear, shake like a leaf, shudder, shiver;
blench, blanch, flinch, shrink, recoil, start, shy (away), pull back, back away, draw back, cower, cringe, waver, falter, get cold feet
noun informal
An earthquake: a big quake east of the Rocky Mountains...
- Among those, however, are what are known as killer quakes - earthquakes whose magnitude is great enough to destroy buildings, roads and lives.
- New analyses of old seismic data have unveiled a previously unrecognized type of earthquake - quakes created by brief surges of massive glaciers.
- In her paper, Agnes Helmstetter, now of the University of California, Los Angeles, uses the most complete analysis to date to argue that maps that ignore small quakes miss a big part of the picture.
Derivatives
quaky
- As a result, the quaky Mr Jelly many anticipated failed to emerge from the Hampden tunnel.
- ‘Hun,’ Cheryl said, her voice a tad quaky, but she toughened it up, ‘I would have been worried if he had come home an hour after he left.’
- The best parts of Brian's talent are still here, as if this was the long-delayed sequel to Smile or something, as the close-cropped vocal harmonies, the thick arrangements, and his affecting, if quaky lead vocals are all here in force.
Origin
Old English cwacian.