SHAKING Synonyms: 144 Similar and Opposite Words

shaking 1 of 3

adjective

as in trembling

marked by or given to small uncontrollable bodily movements suffered a shaking chill during his bout with the flu

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shaking

2 of 3

noun

as in twitching

a series of slight movements by a body back and forth or from side to side gave the bottle of salad dressing a good shaking

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as in escape

the act or a means of getting or keeping away from something undesirable condemned the government's shaking of its overseas responsibilities

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shaking

3 of 3

verb

present participle of shake

as in jerking

to make a series of small irregular or violent movements the bus rattled and shook as it barreled down a rutted road

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as in avoiding

to get or keep away from (as a responsibility) through cleverness or trickery we shook our pursuers by cutting through the abandoned lot

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of shaking

Noun

When the shaking stopped, the sample was removed and then readied for sequencing. — Jason Liebowitz, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2026 The strongest shaking is concentrated around the epicenter northwest of Cali and extends toward the Pacific coast, while weaker shaking spreads toward Medellín, Bogotá and surrounding regions. — Nicole Acevedo, NBC news, 10 Aug. 2026 Residents described an intense and prolonged shaking that triggered alarms and forced widespread evacuations. — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 10 Aug. 2026 But Tuesday’s shaking, which toppled shelves and hurled computers to the floor, was worse in Yatsushiro than anything Matsushita experienced a decade ago. — USA Today, 30 July 2026 During the many scenes of roiling seas and inevitable shipwrecks, the shaking met the action appropriately. — Matt Minton, Variety, 22 July 2026 Earthquakes' sudden, rapid shaking can cause fires, tsunamis, landslides or avalanches. — Ca Earthquake Bot, Sacbee.com, 16 July 2026 When the shaking subsided, Perez could not reach her nephew, or his wife, by phone. — Joshua Partlow, The Atlantic, 30 June 2026 Engineers said that older housing erected in the 1950s and 1960s — before modern earthquake standards were adopted — may not have been retrofitted to survive such violent shaking. — ABC News, 27 June 2026

Verb

Knightsbridge was challenged over the opening mile by the speedy Full Serrano before shaking him off at the head of the stretch. — ABC News, 22 Aug. 2026 Hood makes the sign of the cross with his shaking hands and removes his glasses to wipe away a tear. — Miami Herald, 22 Aug. 2026 There’s also the hot water method, and shaking cloves in a jar method, and the microwaving for 15 seconds-method. — Rebecca Firkser, Bon Appetit Magazine, 21 Aug. 2026 At this point, Davis was seen shaking his head in the courtroom. — Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 21 Aug. 2026 Crow’s sons wore suits and smiled in one snap, and then were seen shaking hands with the Pope in the next. — Kayla Grant, PEOPLE, 20 Aug. 2026 White slammed Garry for shaking hands and embracing Makhachev before the final round. — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2026 Yohanna Embu, a resident of Sikka, a regency in East Nusa Tenggara, said a number of buildings were damaged by the strong shaking and panicked people ran to higher ground. — Yacob Herin, Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2026 Bouncing, jiggling, jumping, or shaking could increase the sensation of having to go to the bathroom. — Amber J. Tresca, Verywell Health, 14 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for shaking

Adjective

As for supplements that claim to boost testosterone, researchers say the scientific ground is shaky at best.

— Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 20 Aug. 2026
For starters, the science is shakier than cursive’s champions let on.

— Mary Jean Tecce DeCarlo, The Conversation, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of shaky

Noun

Betelgeuse and the Pleiades hung—one billowing, one trembling—out of sight somewhere past the window frame.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 19 Aug. 2026
When the trembling decreased, the 27-year-old mother took the stairs seven stories down with her young child in her arms and evacuated the building.

— Nicole Acevedo, NBC news, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of trembling

Verb

Without more straightforward approaches from vendors, such as easily comprehensible privacy policies and avoiding inappropriate ads, monitors are dangerously encroaching into smart-TV-like territory.

— Scharon Harding, ArsTechnica, 24 Aug. 2026
The key, according to both experts, is avoiding too much width around the face.

— Laura Solla, Vogue, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of avoiding

Adjective

Standing 10 yards in front of us on a corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue was a shivering elderly woman who looked lost.

— Richard Greenberg, Los Angeles Times, 6 Feb. 2026
What she’s produced is a searching, pointedly disorienting text, studded with passages of extreme beauty and generous humor, that wears whimsy like a shivering veil over consuming discomfort, even terror.

— Paul McAdory, Vulture, 22 Sep. 2025

Definition of shivering

Noun

The score remained knotted until the eighth inning, when Dodgers left-hander Tanner Scott gave up a leadoff double to Matt Olson — the first extra-base hit of the game — and a two-out RBI single to Ozzie Albies to give the Braves the lead.

— Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026
The chance that a runner scores from third base with fewer than two outs is as high as 90%.

— Chad Bishop, AJC.com, 26 Aug. 2026