shake

verb

/ʃeɪk/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they shake	/ʃeɪk/ /ʃeɪk/
he / she / it shakes	/ʃeɪks/ /ʃeɪks/
past simple shook	/ʃʊk/ /ʃʊk/
past participle shaken	/ˈʃeɪkən/ /ˈʃeɪkən/
-ing form shaking	/ˈʃeɪkɪŋ/ /ˈʃeɪkɪŋ/

Idioms Phrasal Verbs

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object/building/person

[intransitive, transitive] to move or make somebody/something move with short quick movements from side to side or up and down

The whole house shakes when a train goes past.
shake somebody/something Shake the bottle well before use.
The explosion shook windows miles from the site.
shake somebody/something by something He shook her violently by the shoulders.
shake somebody/something + adj. He knelt and gently shook her awake.
She shook her hair loose.

Extra Examples

The ground began to shake.
He shook the blankets vigorously to get rid of the dust.
Shake the pan gently to settle the contents.
She must have shaken the baby quite violently to inflict such severe injuries.

Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb

hard
roughly
vigorously
…

preposition

See full entry

[transitive] shake something + adv./prep. to move something in a particular direction by shaking

She bent down to shake a pebble out of her shoe.
His father used to come home and shake the dust off his work clothes.
He stood up, shaking sand everywhere.

hands

[transitive, intransitive] to take somebody’s hand and move it up and down as a way of saying hello or to show that you agree about something

shake hands Do people in Italy shake hands when they meet?
shake hands with somebody She refused to shake hands with him.
shake somebody’s hand He stepped forward and shook my hand.
shake somebody by the hand Our host shook each of us warmly by the hand.
shake hands on something They shook hands on the deal (= to show that they had reached an agreement).
shake on something They shook on the deal (= shook hands to show the deal was agreed).
Let's shake on it.

Extra Examples

The captains shook hands before the game commenced.
If I met him I'd shake him by the hand and congratulate him.

Topics Opinion and argumenta2

Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb

firmly
vigorously
warmly
…

phrases

shake somebody by the hand

See full entry

your head

[transitive] shake your head to turn your head from side to side as a way of saying ‘no’ or to show that you are sad, feel doubt, etc.

‘Drink?’ he offered. She shook her head.
The old man watched them walk off into the night, shaking his head sadly.
She shook her head in disbelief.
He shook his head at the thought.

Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb

decisively
emphatically
firmly
…

preposition

See full entry

your fist

[transitive] shake your fist (at somebody) to show that you are angry with somebody; to threaten somebody by shaking your fist (= closed hand)

The man shook his fist at the court after he was sentenced.

of body

[intransitive] to make short quick movements that you cannot control, for example because you are cold or afraid synonym tremble

Her hands had started to shake.
shake with something He was shaking with fear.
He saw his mother turn away, her shoulders shaking with laughter.
His whole body shook with rage.
I was shaking like a leaf.

Extra Examples

He was almost shaking with the intensity of what he was saying.
He was crying and shaking all over.
I found myself shaking uncontrollably with cold.
I just couldn't stop shaking.
I was numb with dread. I was literally shaking.
Roxy was practically shaking with anger.
Natalie fairly shook with laughter.
She got up, her legs shaking as well as her hands.

Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb

badly
furiously
terribly
…

preposition

from
with

phrases

be shaking all over
be shaking from head to toe
be shaking in your boots
…

See full entry

of voice

[intransitive] shake (with something) (of somebody’s voice) to sound unsteady, usually because you are nervous, upset or angry

‘Who are you?’ he asked, his voice shaking.
Her voice shook with emotion.

shock somebody

[transitive] (not used in the progressive tenses) to shock or upset somebody very much

shake somebody He was badly shaken by the news of her death.
shake somebody up The accident really shook her up.
Shaken up by the early goal against them, the team began to fight back.

Topics Feelingsb2

belief/idea

[transitive] shake something to make a belief or an idea less certain

The incident had shaken her faith in him.
This announcement is bound to shake the confidence of the industry.

Topics Doubt, guessing and certaintyc2

get rid of

[transitive] to get rid of something

shake something off I can't seem to shake off this cold.
She has finally managed to shake off her old wrist injury.
shake something He couldn't shake the feeling that there was something wrong.
She never seemed to completely shake off the dumb blonde image.

Word OriginOld English sc(e)acan (verb), of Germanic origin.

Idioms

shake/rock the foundations of something | shake/rock something to its foundations

to cause people to question their basic beliefs about something
- This issue has shaken the foundations of French politics.
- an event which rocked the foundations of British politics
- The scandal rocked the legal establishment to its foundations.

shake in your boots/shoes

(informal) to be very frightened or nervousTopics Feelingsc2

shake a leg

(old-fashioned, informal) used to tell somebody to start to do something or to hurry

shake

noun

/ʃeɪk/

Idioms

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movement

[countable, usually singular] an act of shaking somebody/something

She gave him a shake to wake him.
Give the bottle a good shake before opening.
shake of something He dismissed the idea with a firm shake of his head (= turning it from side to side to mean ‘no’).

of body

the shakes

[plural] (informal) a physical condition in which you cannot stop your body from shaking because of fear, illness, or because you have drunk too much alcohol

I always get the shakes before exams.

Topics Illnessc1

drink

(also milkshake)

[countable] a drink made of milk, and sometimes ice cream, with the added taste of fruit or chocolate, which is mixed or shaken until it is full of bubbles

a strawberry shake