trembling 1 of 3

trembling

2 of 3

noun

as in twitching
a series of slight movements by a body back and forth or from side to side at the first sign of the room's trembling, I ducked for cover, for I was certain that it was the start of the big quake

Synonyms & Similar Words

trembling

3 of 3

verb

present participle of tremble

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 trembling
Noun
Betelgeuse and the Pleiades hung—one billowing, one trembling—out of sight somewhere past the window frame. 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 All the trembling, as Kimbangu touched the sick, alarmed European settlers and reassured the plantation workers who trekked to Nkamba in search of healing. Rodney Muhumuza, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2026 At first this change of scale vivifies the butterfly—its brief stillness, the angle of its wings, its trembling—while freezing everything else, including the novel’s action. Ben Lerner, The New York Review of Books, 19 Mar. 2026 Its strength ranges from mild, causing little more discomfort than a slight trembling, to severe, in which passengers or flight crew can be thrown around the cabin and risk injury if not wearing seatbelts. Cat Rainsford, Popular Science, 15 Jan. 2026 There’s Walter’s serene cello and Marjorie’s pensive, slightly coy violin, sometimes playful or petulant or, still, a little vain and secretive — other times thin and trembling, lost in the haze of dementia. Sara Holdren, Vulture, 9 Dec. 2025 Olsen plays Joan’s indecision with winsome fluster, at first breathy and trembling but eventually finding her resolve. Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2025 Still, the cluster exhibited a subtle trembling motion while it was held in place. Chris Young, Interesting Engineering, 6 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trembling
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
Noun
  • 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
Verb
  • But each of its eight-and-a-half minutes introduces a subtle mutation, rotating buzzing electronics and quivering guitars into the spotlight.
    Arman Khan, Pitchfork, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Located on the street level of the Harbor Boulevard complex, the new shop gives dessert-loving denizens another place to pick up the quivering treat.
    Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 26 May 2026
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
Noun
  • Casting near banks and using a twitching technique can increase success during the hatch.
    Dac Collins, Outdoor Life, 14 May 2026
  • During this phase, octopuses display visible twitching along with rapid changes in skin color and texture, per NPR.
    Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 27 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • Surprising Fact The National Gallery of Art, which is located on Constitution Avenue and nearby Pennsylvania Avenue, boarded up some of its outdoor sculptures after conducting a vibration study for the race, according to NPR.
    Antonio Pequeño IV, Forbes.com, 23 Aug. 2026
  • Some art experts have expressed concern that vibrations from the track construction and race itself could damage the artifacts inside.
    Rachel Treisman, NPR, 21 Aug. 2026
Noun
  • The director again shows his action smarts by creating a brief lull — albeit while leaning hard on one of the more sudsy passages of composer Fernando Velázquez’s generic score — before the next shuddering impact sends the number of casualties skyrocketing.
    David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 28 Apr. 2026
  • Fellow clubgoers splashed cold water on his face in an attempt to stop the shuddering.
    Lynsey Eidell, PEOPLE, 31 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Trembling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trembling. Accessed 26 Aug. 2026.

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