shake

/ˈʃeɪk/

//ˈʃeɪk// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"shake" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“shake” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #4,121. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#4,121
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To cause (something) to move rapidly in opposite directions alternatingly.

Corpus desk

Index EN-shake · shake · English

shake · rank #4,121 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #4,121
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH satellite

Nearest frequency peer: satellite (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “shake”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “shake” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

shake vs she
60% similar
shake vs shoe
60% similar
shake vs shaw
60% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for shake
PropertyValue
Headwordshake
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈʃeɪk/
Letters5
Frequency rank#4,121
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “shake”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).shakelands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “satellite” (#4,120), “shore” (#4,122), “Russell” (#4,119). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “shake” is #4,121. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around shake (IPA /ˈʃeɪk/), averb. Corpus frequency is #4,121 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 11 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for shake, with forms such as "hsake", "sahke", and "shaek". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "she", "shoe", "shaw", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English schaken, from Old English sċeacan, sċacan (“to shake”), from Proto-West Germanic *skakan, from Proto-Germanic *skakaną (“to shake, swing, escape”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)keg-, *(s)kek- (“to jump, move”). Cognate with Scots schake,… The correct English form is shake, spelled S-H-A-K-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To cause (something) to move rapidly in opposite directions alternatingly.
  2. 2
    To move (one's head) from side to side, especially to indicate refusal, reluctance, or disapproval.
  3. 3
    To move or remove by agitating; to throw off by a jolting or vibrating motion.
  4. 4
    To disturb emotionally; to shock.
  5. 5
    To lose, evade, or get rid of (something).
  6. 6
    To move from side to side.
  7. 7
    To shake hands.
  8. 8
    To dance.
  9. 9
    To give a tremulous tone to; to trill.
  10. 10
    To threaten to overthrow.
  11. 11
    To be agitated; to lose firmness.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how shake appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The earthquake shook the building.
  2. He shook the can of soda for thirty seconds before delivering it to me, so that, when I popped it open, soda went everywhere.

Etymology

From Middle English schaken, from Old English sċeacan, sċacan (“to shake”), from Proto-West Germanic *skakan, from Proto-Germanic *skakaną (“to shake, swing, escape”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)keg-, *(s)kek- (“to jump, move”). Cognate with Scots schake, schack (“to shake”), West Frisian schaekje (“to shake”), Dutch schaken (“to elope, make clean, shake”), Low German schaken (“to move, shift, push, shake”) and schacken (“to shake, shock”), Old Norse skaka (“to shake”), Norwegian Nynorsk skaka (“to shake”), Swedish skaka (“to shake”), Danish skage (“to shake”), Dutch schokken (“to shake, shock”), Russian скака́ть (skakátʹ, “to jump”). More at shock.

Synonyms

jigglequakeshagshaketremblevibratewiggle

This word in other languages

agitar(Español)secouer(Français)schütteln(Deutsch)sacudir(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • hsake
  • sahke
  • shaek
  • shakke
  • shhake
  • shkae
  • sshake

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of shake - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

hsake2sahke2shaek2shakke1shhake1shkae2sshake1
Edit distance from "shake"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "shake"?
"shake" is spelled S-H-A-K-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈʃeɪk/.
What does "shake" mean?
As a verb, "shake" means: To cause (something) to move rapidly in opposite directions alternatingly.
What words are commonly confused with "shake"?
"shake" is commonly confused with "she", "shoe", "shaw". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "shake"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "shake" is /ˈʃeɪk/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "shake"?
From Middle English schaken, from Old English sċeacan, sċacan (“to shake”), from Proto-West Germanic *skakan, from Proto-Germanic *skakaną (“to shake, swing, escape”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)keg-, *(s)kek- (“to jump, move”). Cognate with Sco... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "shake", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

shore#4,122spots#4,123robin#4,118stats#4,124

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

bones7 variantsjokes7 variantscommit7 variantsbrave7 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list