tremble
Americanverb (used without object)
noun
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the act of trembling.
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a state or fit of trembling.
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(used with a singular verb) trembles,
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Pathology. milk sickness.
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Veterinary Pathology. a toxic condition of cattle and sheep caused by the eating of white snakeroot and characterized by muscular tremors.
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verb
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to vibrate with short slight movements; quiver
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to shake involuntarily, as with cold or fear; shiver
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to experience fear or anxiety
noun
Related Words
See shake.
Other Word Forms
- trembling adjective
- tremblingly adverb
- trembly adjective
- untrembling adjective
- untremblingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of tremble
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English trem(b)len (verb), from Old French trembler, from Vulgar Latin *tremulāre, derivative of Latin tremulus tremulous
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Every time it thundered, our old log house trembled and the windows rattled.
From Literature
She trembled as she tried to feed thread into a needle.
From Literature
She picked up her notebook and pencil—but before she could start to write, the ground began to tremble.
From Literature
Even the opening credits, some written in slithering hair, seem to tremble out of either fear or ecstasy.
From Los Angeles Times
Andre’s voice trembles as he rolls a mismatched pair of socks into a ball, then chucks it at the wall.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
