as in earthquakes
a shaking of the earth
the quake registered 6.5 on the Richter scale, causing widespread damage
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in shakes
to make a series of small irregular or violent movements
the horror film was so scary it left us quaking with fear for hours afterwards
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of quakes
Don Sweeney, Sacbee.com, 11 Jan. 2026
The quakes were centered in a residential area just south of Bollinger Canyon Drive between Dougherty Road and Alcosta Boulevard.
—Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 9 Jan. 2026
Unlike the familiar pattern of a single large earthquake followed by aftershocks, swarms consist of many small quakes without a clear mainshock.
—Bay Area News Group, Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2026
How deep below Earth's surface were the quakes?
—Bailey Allen, The Providence Journal, 8 Jan. 2026
That said, there have been situations when relatively modest quakes have preceded huge ones.
—Los Angeles Times, Boston Herald, 22 Dec. 2025
While Indonesia’s latest quakes did not generate tsunami alerts, past events have shown that similar offshore earthquakes can trigger destructive waves.
—Hollie Silverman, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2025
Noun
Also, many of the quakes may be around the same magnitude, geologists said.
—Don Sweeney, Sacbee.com, 11 Jan. 2026
The quakes were centered in a residential area just south of Bollinger Canyon Drive between Dougherty Road and Alcosta Boulevard.
—Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 9 Jan. 2026
Unlike the familiar pattern of a single large earthquake followed by aftershocks, swarms consist of many small quakes without a clear mainshock.
—Bay Area News Group, Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2026
How deep below Earth's surface were the quakes?
—Bailey Allen, The Providence Journal, 8 Jan. 2026
That said, there have been situations when relatively modest quakes have preceded huge ones.
—Los Angeles Times, Boston Herald, 22 Dec. 2025
While Indonesia’s latest quakes did not generate tsunami alerts, past events have shown that similar offshore earthquakes can trigger destructive waves.
—Hollie Silverman, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for quakes
Noun
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It is estimated that there are 500,000 detectable earthquakes in the world each year.—
CA Earthquake Bot,
Sacbee.com,
11 Jan. 2026
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Last month, at least seven earthquakes rattled the coast of Alaska in a span of 24 hours.—
Gabe Whisnant,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Kicking off the Year With Self-Care These days, her morning ritual also includes Premier Protein shakes.—
Leslie D. Rose,
Parents,
6 Jan. 2026
-
Berto is seen walking back to his truck, while the Tahoe driver walks toward the front end of the Tahoe, looks down at the bumper and shakes his head before turning to point the firearm at Berto, the affidavit said.—
Timia Cobb
Breaking News Reporter,
Dallas Morning News,
6 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The tremors from Old Trafford also rustled the papers on the desk of Napoli’s sporting director Giovanni Manna.—
James Horncastle,
New York Times,
13 Jan. 2026
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More than 235 people from as far away as Menlo Park and Fremont reported feeling the tremors to the agency.—
Don Sweeney,
Sacbee.com,
11 Jan. 2026
Verb
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So one shudders to think what might happen when the Dolphins now face a murderer’s row of elite running backs and mobile quarterbacks.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The boy jerks his head as if to wake himself, turns around abruptly and looks the other way, even though there’s nothing special to see besides darkness and emptiness, which is where a living eye should never look.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Nov. 2025
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Paul goes to shake her hand but jerks it back, then gives her a left-handed handshake.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The former allows the player to set beats-per-minute, beats per bar, select different rhythms and whether a sound beeps and/or the device vibrates to the beat.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
9 Jan. 2026
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The red vibrates off the page in such a pleasing way.—
Emily Temple,
Literary Hub,
11 Dec. 2025
Verb
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The music of home often quivers with nostalgia.—
Justin Davidson,
Vulture,
22 Sep. 2025
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There’s a breathless mood in the air that quivers and quakes at the protests to come.—
Sara Stridsberg
September 15,
Literary Hub,
15 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Quakes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quakes. Accessed 21 Jan. 2026.
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