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¹wake

verb \ˈwāk\

: to cause (a person or animal) to be awake after sleeping

: to stop sleeping : to become awake after sleeping

woke \ˈwōk\ also waked \wākt\ wo·ken \ˈwō-kən\ or waked also wokewak·ing

Full Definition of WAKE

intransitive verb

a : to be or remain awake

b archaic : to remain awake on watch especially over a corpse

c obsolete : to stay up late in revelry

: awake —often used with up

transitive verb

: to stand watch over (as a dead body); especially : to hold a wake over

a : to rouse from or as if from sleep : awake —often used with up

b : stir, excite <woke up latent possibilities — Norman Douglas>

c : to arouse conscious interest in : alert —usually used with to <woke the public to the risks>

— wak·er noun

See wake defined for English-language learners

See wake defined for kids

Origin of WAKE

partly from Middle English waken (past wook, past participle waken), from Old English wacan to awake (past wōc, past participle wacen); partly from Middle English wakien, waken (past & past participle waked), from Old English wacian to be awake (past wacode, past participle wacod); akin to Old English wæccan to watch, Latin vegēre to enliven

First Known Use: before 12th century

Related to WAKE

Synonyms: arouse, awake, awaken, knock up [British], rouse, waken

Antonyms: lull

Rhymes with WAKE

ache, bake, brake, break, cake, crake, drake, Drake, fake, flake, hake, jake, lake, make, quake, rake, sake, shake, slake, snake, stake, steak, strake, take

²wake

noun

Definition of WAKE

: the state of being awake

a (1) : an annual English parish festival formerly held in commemoration of the church's patron saint (2) : vigil 1a

b : the festivities originally connected with the wake of an English parish church —usually used in plural but singular or plural in construction

c British : an annual holiday or vacation —usually used in plural but singular or plural in construction

: a watch held over the body of a dead person prior to burial and sometimes accompanied by festivity

First Known Use of WAKE

13th century

³wake

noun

Definition of WAKE

: the track left by a moving body (as a ship) in a fluid (as water); broadly : a track or path left

: aftermath 3

— in the wake of

: close behind and in the same path of travel <missionaries arrived in the wake of conquistadors and soldiers — Sabine MacCormack>

: as a result of : as a consequence of <power vacuums left in the wake of the second world war — A. M. Schlesinger b1917>

Origin of WAKE

akin to Middle Low German wake wake, Norwegian dialect vok, Old Norse vǫk hole in ice

First Known Use: 1627

WAKE Defined for Kids

¹wake

verb \ˈwāk\

woke \ˈwōk\ also wakedwo·ken \ˈwō-kən\ or waked also wokewak·ing

Definition of WAKE for Kids

: to arouse from sleep : awake Hint:This sense of wake is often used with up. <Wake us up at six.>

: to become alert or aware

Headscratcher for WAKE

The opposite of wake up is not wake down, but it does have something to do with a downward direction. The opposite of wake up is fall asleep.