First Known Use: before 12th century
Dictionary
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
1
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
2
: awake —often used with up
transitive verb
1
: to stand watch over (as a dead body); especially : to hold a wake over
2
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
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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
2wake
noun
Definition of WAKE
1
: the state of being awake
2
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
3
: 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
1
: the track left by a moving body (as a ship) in a fluid (as water); broadly : a track or path left
2
: aftermath 3
— in the wake of
1
: close behind and in the same path of travel <missionaries arrived in the wake of conquistadors and soldiers — Sabine MacCormack>
2
: 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
1
: to arouse from sleep : awake Hint:This sense of wake is often used with up. <Wake us up at six.>
2
: 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.
2wake
noun
Definition of WAKE for Kids
: a watch held over the body of a dead person before burial
3wake
noun
Definition of WAKE for Kids
: a track or mark left by something moving especially in the water <a motorboat's wake>
Wake
geographical name \ˈwāk\
Definition of WAKE for Kids
island North Pacific N of Marshall Islands; U.S. territory
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