Definition of "shake" in English

Verb

1. To cause (something) to move rapidly in opposite directions alternatingly.

   • The earthquake shook the building.
   • He shook the can of soda for thirty seconds before delivering it to me, so that, when I popped it open, soda went everywhere.

2. To move (one's head) from side to side, especially to indicate refusal, reluctance, or disapproval.

   • Shaking his head, he kept repeating “No, no, no”.

3. To move or remove by agitating; to throw off by a jolting or vibrating motion.

   • to shake fruit down from a tree

4. To disturb emotionally; to shock.

   • Her father’s death shook her terribly.
   • He was shaken by what had happened.

5. To lose, evade, or get rid of (something).

   • I can’t shake the feeling that I forgot something.

6. To move from side to side.

   • She shook with grief.

7. To shake hands.

   • OK, let’s shake on it.

8. To dance.

   • She was shaking it on the dance floor.

9. To give a tremulous tone to; to trill.

   • to shake a note in music

10. To threaten to overthrow.

    • The experience shook my religious belief.

11. To be agitated; to lose firmness.

Noun

1. The act of shaking or being shaken; tremulous or back-and-forth motion.

   • The cat gave the mouse a shake.
   • She replied in the negative, with a shake of her head.

2. A twitch, a spasm, a tremor.

3. A dance popular in the 1960s in which the head, limbs, and body are shaken.

4. A milkshake.

5. A beverage made by adding ice cream to a (usually carbonated) drink; a float.

6. Shake cannabis, small, leafy fragments of cannabis that gather at the bottom of a bag of marijuana.

7. An adulterant added to cocaine powder.

8. A thin shingle.

9. A crack or split between the growth rings in wood.

10. A fissure in rock or earth.

11. A basic wooden shingle made from split logs, traditionally used for roofing etc.

12. Instant, second. (Especially in two shakes.)

13. One of the staves of a hogshead or barrel taken apart.