/əˈweɪk/, /əˈweːk/, [əˈweːk]
OriginFrom Middle English awake, a shortened form of awaken (“awakened, awake”), past participle of Middle English awaken (“to awaken”). See verb below. Compare Saterland Frisian woak (“awake”), German Low German waak (“awake”), German wach (“awake”).
- not-comparable, predicativeNot asleep; conscious.
“By quarter to six all this had me so awake and agitated that even the Balinese wind chimes that I hung up in the garden to relax me began to sound like Big Ben.”
- broadly, figuratively, not-comparable, predicativeAlert, aware.
“They were awake to the possibility of a decline in sales.”
“The Baker was a two-handed hitter, and seemed perfectly awake to the business before him.”
“‘Sammy,’ whispered Mr. Weller, looking cautiously round; ‘[…] Me and a cab’net-maker has dewised a plan for gettin’ him out. A pianner, Samivel—a pianner!’ […]
‘And wot ‘ud be the good o’ that?’ said ”
- intransitive, predicativeTo become conscious after having slept.
“Awake! for Morning in the Bowl of Night,
Has flung the Stone that puts the Stars to Flight:
And Lo! the Hunter of the East has caught
The Sultán's Turret in a Noose of light.”
- predicative, transitiveTo cause (somebody) to stop sleeping.
“Thenne she called the heremyte syre Vlfyn I am a gentylwoman that wold speke with the knyght whiche is with yow / Thenne the good man awaked Galahad / & badde hym aryse and speke with a gentylwoman th”
“[This ant] I ſuffered to lye above an hour in the Spirit; and after I had taken it out, and put its body and legs into a natural poſture, remained moveleſs about an hour; but then , upon a ſudden, as ”
- predicative, transitiveTo make aware of something.
- predicative, transitiveTo excite or to stir up something latent.
- figuratively, predicative, transitiveTo rouse from a state of inaction or dormancy.
- figuratively, intransitive, predicativeTo come out of a state of inaction or dormancy.
“1867-1879, Edward Augustus Freeman, The History of the Norman Conquest of England
The national spirit again awoke.”
“Awake to righteousness, and sin not.”
Formsawakes(present, singular, third-person) · awaking(participle, present) · awoke(past) · awaked(past, rare) · awoken(participle, past) · awaked(participle, past, rare) · awoke(participle, past, rare) · awaken(participle, past, rare)