wake

1 of 3

verb

woke ˈwōk How to pronounce wake (audio) also waked wākt How to pronounce wake (audio) ; woken ˈwō-kən How to pronounce wake (audio) or waked also woke; waking

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, wake up
They woke early.

transitive verb

1
: to stand watch over (someone or something)
especially : to hold a wake over
2
a
: to rouse from or as if from sleep : awake, wake up
Something woke her in the middle of the night.
b
: stir, excite
an experience that woke old feelings
c
: to arouse conscious interest in : alert
usually used with to
woke the public to the risks
waker noun

wake

2 of 3

noun (1)

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

wake

3 of 3

noun (2)

1
: the track left by a moving body (such as a ship) in a fluid (such as water)
broadly : a track or path left
2
Phrases
in the wake of
1
: close behind and in the same path of travel
missionaries arrived in the wake of conquistadors and soldiersSabine MacCormack
2
: as a result of : as a consequence of
power vacuums left in the wake of the second world warA. M. Schlesinger born 1917

Examples of wake in a Sentence

Verb She can never remember her dreams upon waking. my banging around in the kitchen woke my wife
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
California Huntington Beach is sticking it to ‘woke’ California. Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024 With the ring destroyed, and trauma sustained, the triumphant hobbit wakes in his bed. Sara C. Hahn, The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2024 This means that come early spring, cats waking from the cold have lots of dead baitfish on the bottom to eat. Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 14 Mar. 2024 In a telephone interview with IndyStar, Grogg said Dominica's Criminal Investigation Department arrived at the family's home at 5 a.m. on March 6 without warning, waking him, his wife and three youngest children from sleep. Alexandria Burris, The Indianapolis Star, 13 Mar. 2024 Neighbors complained that the roar of his bike starting up was waking them up in the morning. Lenny Rashid Ruvaga, The Christian Science Monitor, 11 Mar. 2024 The pilot in command fell asleep and woke just under an hour later. Jennifer Hassan, Washington Post, 10 Mar. 2024 The annual event celebrating the worst that Hollywood had to offer in the previous year was swept by the public domain waking nightmare, Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey, winning five Golden Raspberries. Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 9 Mar. 2024 Most of these light settings are for aesthetic purposes, but Kahn says a sunrise alarm clock with a red light option may be more helpful at waking you up than other colored light settings. Adria Greenhauff, Better Homes & Gardens, 8 Mar. 2024
Noun
In the wake of the news of his exit from Valentino, Vogue looks back through its wedding archive to remember the many fashionable brides who chose Pierpaolo Piccioli for their big day. Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 25 Mar. 2024 As virulent antisemitism roils the nation’s college campuses in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war, USC is making a rare gesture to recognize the crippling effect of anti-Jewish hatred on society and the human spirit. Jaweed Kaleem, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2024 Monday’s lawsuit comes after Burchett’s false post sparked a social media firestorm in the wake of the Feb. 14 mass shooting in Kansas City that injured more than 20 people and killed 43-year-old Lisa Lopez-Galvan. Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 25 Mar. 2024 Defensive reinforcements come to town The Panthers had a clear plan for retooling their defense in the wake of losing Burns, Frankie Luvu and Yetur Gross-Matos during the first week of free agency. Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 25 Mar. 2024 Federal regulators had grounded the plane in the wake of the fatal crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia. Ian Duncan, Washington Post, 25 Mar. 2024 In the wake of Iron Man's success, Favreau has continued to switch between roles in front of and behind the camera. Andrew Walsh, EW.com, 24 Mar. 2024 In an interview with CNN’s Chris Wallace last year, McDaniel refused to say that Biden’s victory was fair, echoing false claims from Trump in the wake of his electoral defeat. Oliver Darcy, CNN, 24 Mar. 2024 In total, 21 states and the District of Columbia have red flag laws, including Florida, which passed one in the wake of the Parkland shooting. Deepa Shivaram, NPR, 23 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wake.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

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

Noun (2)

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

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Noun (1)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1627, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of wake was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near wake

Cite this Entry

“Wake.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wake. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

wake

1 of 3 verb
woke ˈwōk How to pronounce wake (audio) also waked ˈwākt How to pronounce wake (audio) ; woken ˈwō-kən How to pronounce wake (audio) or waked also woke; waking
1
: to be or remain awake
2
: to stand watch over (as a dead body)
especially : to hold a wake over
3
: to arouse from or as if from sleep : awake
often used with up
waker noun

wake

2 of 3 noun
: a time before a dead person is buried when people gather to remember him or her and often to view the body

wake

3 of 3 noun
1
: a track or path left by a moving body (as a ship) in the water
2
Etymology

Verb

from Old English wacan "to awake" and Old English wacian "to be awake"

Noun

of Germanic origin

More from Merriam-Webster on wake

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!