quake

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A sudden shaking of the ground; an earthquake.

   California is hit by small quakes almost every month.

2. 2
   verb

   To shake or tremble, often from fear or cold.

   I felt the ground quaking beneath my feet.

Simplified etymology

Quake goes back to Old English and belongs to a group of trembling or shaking words, including quaver and quiver, that probably have a Germanic origin.

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”).

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External links

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