woke up also waked up; woken up also waked up; waking up; wakes up
: awake entry 1, wake entry 1: such as
a
: to cease sleeping : to become awake
I woke up late this morning.
When I woke up on Monday the sky was the color of mercury, and the air was heavy with moisture.—
Ann M. Martin
Ann M. Martin
b
: to rouse (a person or animal) from or as if from sleep
The sound of a door slamming woke him up.
c
: to become aware or to make (someone) aware of something (such as an existing problem or danger)
They finally woke up and realized what was happening.
—usually used with toa study that woke people up to the importance of regular exercise
In 1997, … Jacob Nielsen predicted that if newspapers didn't wake up to the threat of online classified advertising and dominate the field by 1998, many of them would die within a decade.—Emily Benedek
Emily BenedekExamples of wake-up in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the WebHoward Lafranchi, The Christian Science Monitor, 4 Apr. 2024
The scene wasn’t anyone’s idea of a soothing wake-up ritual.
—Peter C. Baker, New York Times, 2 Apr. 2024
Union sends wake-up call to woke Dems thinking of attending cop's funeral …Read more
COP KILLING: Suspect in NYPD murder came close to gunning down his partner: docs …Read more
Subscribe now to get Fox News Politics newsletter in your inbox.
—Fox News Staff, Fox News, 28 Mar. 2024
Related article ‘Absolutely a wake-up call’: Key Bridge tragedy has markings of 1980 Baltimore crash, but worse
The dramatic difference in outcomes between the two accidents is an example of the dangers caused by the massive increase in shipping vessel size in the intervening decades.
—Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN, 28 Mar. 2024
The Aladdin suite also includes Genie-Tini cocktails and Magic Mocktails, a Genie wake-up call, complimentary breakfast and Aladdin coloring activities.
—Lois Alter Mark, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Sydney Sweeney Dishes on Her Favorite Comfort Meal, Calls the Classic Combo a ‘Childhood Staple’ (Exclusive)
Sweeney also mentioned that her dog Tank is her wake-up call every morning.
—Escher Walcott, Peoplemag, 26 Mar. 2024
However, last year’s sluggish hiring pace should be a wake-up call to state leaders — political, business and labor — that California cannot take its long-running job-creation success for granted.
—Jonathan Lansner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Mar. 2024
Their wake-up call will be at 7 (a.m.) or whatever time.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 23 Mar. 2024
Aaron Couch, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Apr. 2024
Garner starred in the film as a 13-year-old girl who wakes up as an adult woman, while Ruffalo played her love interest and Greer played her friend Lucy.
—USA TODAY, 24 Apr. 2024
The chef Shota Nakajima goes to bed early and wakes up early.
—Eric Kim, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2024
Green Day has always had a young fan base, and American Idiot was a huge touchstone for so many kids who were going through adolescence and waking up to the news and current events.
—Eric Renner Brown, Billboard, 24 Apr. 2024
The kids also understood that their dad was in fragile health in the weeks following his surgery, with Paige recounting how Finn woke up with a runny nose — and stopped to put a mask on before seeing his parents.
—Cara Lynn Shultz, Peoplemag, 23 Apr. 2024
Furious at the murder of Medgar Evers and at the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, that killed four Black girls, Simone is trying to write a song that will shock and wake up her nightclub audiences.
—Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 22 Apr. 2024
Photo: Courtesy Everett Collection In the film—released in 2004—Garner plays an unpopular 13-year-old who magically wakes up one day in the body of her 30-year-old self, a glamorous fashion editor at the fictional Poise magazine.
—Keaton Bell, Vogue, 19 Apr. 2024
Misty Stamm was working tirelessly to figure out the details: waking up early, the hourslong drives, booking hotels and finding doctors who could legally administer gender-affirming hormone therapy to her 16-year-old transgender daughter.
—Kiara Alfonseca, ABC News, 19 Apr. 2024
Adjective
For some Israelis, largely among the Israeli Arab minority, Oct. 7 was a wake-up call that peace and regional progress won’t come without the Palestinians.
—Howard Lafranchi, The Christian Science Monitor, 4 Apr. 2024
The scene wasn’t anyone’s idea of a soothing wake-up ritual.
—Peter C. Baker, New York Times, 2 Apr. 2024
Union sends wake-up call to woke Dems thinking of attending cop's funeral …Read more
COP KILLING: Suspect in NYPD murder came close to gunning down his partner: docs …Read more
Subscribe now to get Fox News Politics newsletter in your inbox.
—Fox News Staff, Fox News, 28 Mar. 2024
Related article ‘Absolutely a wake-up call’: Key Bridge tragedy has markings of 1980 Baltimore crash, but worse
The dramatic difference in outcomes between the two accidents is an example of the dangers caused by the massive increase in shipping vessel size in the intervening decades.
—Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN, 28 Mar. 2024
The Aladdin suite also includes Genie-Tini cocktails and Magic Mocktails, a Genie wake-up call, complimentary breakfast and Aladdin coloring activities.
—Lois Alter Mark, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Sydney Sweeney Dishes on Her Favorite Comfort Meal, Calls the Classic Combo a ‘Childhood Staple’ (Exclusive)
Sweeney also mentioned that her dog Tank is her wake-up call every morning.
—Escher Walcott, Peoplemag, 26 Mar. 2024
However, last year’s sluggish hiring pace should be a wake-up call to state leaders — political, business and labor — that California cannot take its long-running job-creation success for granted.
—Jonathan Lansner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Mar. 2024
Their wake-up call will be at 7 (a.m.) or whatever time.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 23 Mar. 2024
Verb
Danny Boyle is once again directing, after helming 2002’s 28 Days Later, which centered on a man (Cillian Murphy) who wakes up in the hospital to find the United Kingdom overtaken by a zombie plague.
—Aaron Couch, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Apr. 2024
Garner starred in the film as a 13-year-old girl who wakes up as an adult woman, while Ruffalo played her love interest and Greer played her friend Lucy.
—USA TODAY, 24 Apr. 2024
The chef Shota Nakajima goes to bed early and wakes up early.
—Eric Kim, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2024
Green Day has always had a young fan base, and American Idiot was a huge touchstone for so many kids who were going through adolescence and waking up to the news and current events.
—Eric Renner Brown, Billboard, 24 Apr. 2024
The kids also understood that their dad was in fragile health in the weeks following his surgery, with Paige recounting how Finn woke up with a runny nose — and stopped to put a mask on before seeing his parents.
—Cara Lynn Shultz, Peoplemag, 23 Apr. 2024
Furious at the murder of Medgar Evers and at the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, that killed four Black girls, Simone is trying to write a song that will shock and wake up her nightclub audiences.
—Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 22 Apr. 2024
Photo: Courtesy Everett Collection In the film—released in 2004—Garner plays an unpopular 13-year-old who magically wakes up one day in the body of her 30-year-old self, a glamorous fashion editor at the fictional Poise magazine.
—Keaton Bell, Vogue, 19 Apr. 2024
Misty Stamm was working tirelessly to figure out the details: waking up early, the hourslong drives, booking hotels and finding doctors who could legally administer gender-affirming hormone therapy to her 16-year-old transgender daughter.
—Kiara Alfonseca, ABC News, 19 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wake-up.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near wake-up
Cite this Entry
“Wake-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wake-up. Accessed 27 Apr. 2024.
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