King James Bible Dictionary

SHAKE, verb transitive preterit tense shook; participle passive shaken.

1. To cause to move with quick vibrations; to move rapidly one way and the other; to agitate; as, the wind shakes a tree; an earthquake shakes the hills or the earth.

I shook my lap, and said, so God shake out every man from his house-

Nehemiah 5:13

He shook the sacred honors of his head. Dryden.

-As a fig casteth her untimely fruit, when it is shaken of a mighty wind.

Revelation 6:1.

2. To make to totter or tremble.

The rapid wheels shake the heav'n's basis. Milton.

3. To cause to shiver; as, an ague shakes the whole frame.

4. To throw down by a violent motion.

Macbeth is ripe for shaking. Shak.

[But see shake off, which is generally used.]

5. To throw away; to drive off.

'Tis our first intent

To shake all cares and business from our age. [See Shake off.] Shak.

6. To move from firmness; to weaken the stability of; to endanger; to threaten to overthrow. Nothing should shake our belief in the being and perfections of God, and in our own accountableness.

7. To cause to waver or doubt; to impair the resolution of; to depress the courage of.

That ye be not soon shaken in mind. 2 Thessalonians 2:1.

8. To trill; as, to shake a note in music.

To shake hands, sometimes, to unite with; to aggree or contract with; more generally, to take leave of, from the practice of shaking hands at meeting and parting.

To shake off, to drive off; to throw off or down by violence; as, to shake off the dust of the feet; also, to rid one's self; to free from; to divest of; as, to shake off disease or grief; to shake off troublesome dependents.

SHAKE, verb intransitive

1. To be agitated with a waving or vibratory motion; as, the tree shakes with the wind; the house shakes in a tempest.

The foundations of the earth do shake. Isaiah 24:18.

2. To tremble; to shiver; to quake; as, a man shakes in an ague; or he shakes with cold, or with terror.

3. To totter.

Under his burning wheels

The steadfast empyrean shook throught,

All but the throne itself of God. Milton.

SHAKE, noun

1. Concussion; a vacillating or wavering motion; a rapid motion one way and the other; agitation.

The great soldier's honor was composed of thicker stuff which could endure a shake. Herbert.

2. A trembling or shivering; agitation.

3. A motion of hands clasped.

Our salutations were very hearty on both sides, consisting of many kind shakes of the hand. Addison.

4. In music, a trill; a rapid reiteration of two notes comprehending an interval not greater than one whole tone, nor less than a semitone.

SHAKEN, participle passive sha'kn.

1. Impelled with a vacillating motion; agitated.

2. adjective Cracked or split; as shaken timber.

Nor is the wood shaken nor twisted, as those about Capetown. Barrow.

[Our mechanics usually pronounce this shaky, forming the word from shake, like pithy, from pith.]

SHA'KER, noun

1. A person or thing that shakes or agitates; as the shaker of the earth.

2. In the United States, shakers is the name given to the very singular sect of Christians, so called from the agitations or movements whisc characterize their worship.