shaken en · ADJ · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- shā′kən
- /ˈʃeɪkən/ (General-American)
- (Southern-England) audio
- audio -
- (General-American) audio
- audio -
- /ˈʃeɪk(ə)n/ (Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
The verb is derived from Middle English (i)shaken, from (i- (prefix forming past participle forms of verbs)) + shaken (“to tremble, shake; etc.”) + -en (suffix forming past participle forms of verbs). The adjective is derived from the verb. By surface analysis, shake (verb) + -n (a variant of -en (suffix forming past participle forms of verbs; and adjectives)).
Meanings
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Moved rapidly in opposite directions alternatingly.
[A] chief, / With shout and shaken spear / Stands at the prow, and guides them: […]
1849, [Matthew] A[rnold], “The Strayed Reveller”, in The Strayed Reveller, and Other Poems, London: B. Fellowes, […], →OCLC, page 22:For the moment she felt like a shaken child—shaken out of its wailings into awe, and she said humbly—"I will try. I will think."
1876, George Eliot [pseudonym; Mary Ann Evans], chapter XXXVI, in Daniel Deronda, volume III, Edinburgh; London: William Blackwood and Sons, →OCLC, book V (Mordecai), page 97:
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Moved rapidly in opposite directions alternatingly. ▸ Of a drink, especially (alcoholic beverages) a cocktail: mixed by being agitated with ice in a shaker.
The waiter brought the Martinis, shaken and not stirred, as [James] Bond had stipulated, and some slivers of lemon peel in a wine glass. Bond twisted two of them and let them sink to the bottom of his drink.
1956, Ian Fleming, “Bitter Champagne”, in Diamonds are Forever (A New Portway Large Print Book), Bath, Somerset: Chivers Press by arrangement with Jonathan Cape, published 1982, →ISBN, page 92:
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Caused to move (and usually weakened) by a strong force.
The earthquake led to many shaken buildings and structures.
The trunks [of trees] are crushed and shattered / By the fierce blast's unconquerable stress. / […] / And through the ruins of the shaken mountain / The airs hiss and howl— […]
a. 1823 (date written), Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, “Scenes from the Faust of Goëthe”, in Percy Bysshe Shelley, transl., edited by Mary W[ollstonecraft] Shelley, Posthumous Poems of Percy Bysshe Shelley, London: […] [C. H. Reynell] for John and Henry L[eigh] Hunt, […], published 1824, →OCLC, page 404:
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(archaic, broadly, obsolete) Of a cask: taken to pieces which are then tied up together for transportation.
A proportion for the ſetting foorth of a ſhip of 200. tunne, for the killing of the VVhale. […] 800. emptie ſhaken hogſheds, […]
1575, Richard Hakluyt, “The Request of an Honest Merchant to a Friend of His, to be Aduised and Directed in the Course of Killing the Whale, as Followeth. Anno 1575.”, in The Principall Navigations, Voiages, and Discoveries of the English Nation, […], London: […] George Bishop and Ralph Newberie, deputies to Christopher Barker, […], published 1589, →OCLC, page 437:
- (broadly) Of something mined such as coal or ore: broken into pieces.
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(broadly, qualifier:timber industry) Of timber: damaged from being cracked.
[Y]ou muſt chuſe a piece of VVood at leaſt tvvo Inches and a quarter over, leſt you vvant Stuff to vvork on: Nay, if your Stuff prove ſhaken or othervviſe unſound, or your Centers be not very exactly pitcht, you may vvant yet more Stuff; […]
1680, Joseph Moxon, “Numb[er] XII. Applied to the Art of Turning.”, in Mechanick Exercises, or The Doctrine of Handy-Works, […], volume I, London: […] Joseph Moxon, published 1678, →OCLC, § XIII (Of Turning a Cilinder in Soft Wood), pages 206–207:
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(figuratively) Chiefly of a person: having had one's composure or confidence disrupted or upset; in a state of shock or trauma.
My mother is tolerably well, I trust; though her spirits are greatly shaken. She is up stairs and will have great satisfaction in seeing you all. She does not yet leave her dressing-room.
1813 January 27, [Jane Austen], chapter IX, in Pride and Prejudice: […], volume I, London: […] [George Sidney] for T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC, page 93:The truth left many people shaken. They were shocked to realize that they'd been lied to about so many things. The Soviets began to reflect on what they understood about the history of the Communist Party. Five million out of the 19 million Party members publicly quit the CPSU [Communist Party of the Soviet Union] before its collapse.
2020 April 1, Renxin, “Reflecting on History: From the Soviet Communist Party to the Chinese Communist Party”, in Minghui, Falun Dafa, archived from the original on 12 Jul 2025:We were left shaken by the revelations of abuse.
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(figuratively) Weakened by some event.
Be mov'd vvith pitty at the afflicted ſtate of this our ſhaken Monarchy, that novv lies labouring under the throvves, and ſtruggling againſt the grudges of more dreaded Calamities.
1641 May, John Milton, “The Second Book”, in Of Reformation Touching Church-Discipline in England: And the Causes that hitherto have Hindred it. […], [London]: […] Thomas Vnderhill, →OCLC, page 87:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| most shaken | Degree=Sup | lexicographic | |
| more shaken | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic |
Antonyms
Deriveds
shakenly · windshaken · shaken baby syndrome · shakenness · overshaken · unshaken
Synonyms
Translations (9)
de zittrig (chiefly of a person: having had one’s composure or confidence disrupted or upset) · fi järkyttynyt (chiefly of a person: having had one’s composure or confidence disrupted or upset) · fi järistyksessä vaurioitunut (caused to move (and usually weakened) by a strong force) · fi ravistettu (of a drink: mixed by being agitated with ice in a shaker) · th หวั่นไหว (chiefly of a person: having had one’s composure or confidence disrupted or upset) · fi haljennut (of timber: damaged from being cracked) · fi ravistettu (moved rapidly in opposite directions alternatingly) · de erschüttert (chiefly of a person: having had one’s composure or confidence disrupted or upset) · fi osiin purettu (of a cask: taken to pieces which are then tied up together for transportation)