🔄 To move quickly 🙅 To signal with body 😨 To unsettle 🏃 To escape 🥤 A sweet drink 💥 A trembling motion 📱 To trigger device action 🤝 A hand greeting 🪵 A wood shingle 🎶 A musical trill

to shake

392 4.6

To get away from someone who is following you

verb
/ʃeɪk/

Informal

: quitarse de encima

You just can't shake me, can you?
try to shake
unable to shake

And their body does something in a way to shake off that threat.

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Examples

She managed to shake off the distractions and focus on her work.
How am I going to shake off that powerless feeling?
And their body does something in a way to shake off that threat.

Dr. Mayim Bialik
And I just feel like it's important to sort of shake that weight off of yourself.
The EC is now trying to shake off a malaise of false expectations.

Academic text (1992)
The downtrodden, unfortunate, and persecuted shake off their shackles and find comfort and advancement in the new religion.

Academic text (1999)
Belle took hold of Nola and shook the crickets off the hem of her sleeping gown.

Fiction book (1990)
To stay healthy, it's important to shake off any negative thoughts that might hold you back.
He took a deep breath and tried to shake off his nerves before the presentation.

Synonyms

to get away

vsto shake

165 3.0

To escape from people who are holding you, often by force

is about skilful evasion or removal rather than only breaking out of a place

to escape from

vsto shake

137 2.7

To get away from a person, place, or situation that causes trouble

describes general escape rather than using skillful evasive tricks

to shake off

vsto shake

41 3.6

Make something unwanted go away, like an illness, a feeling, or a person following you

focuses on escaping someone or something by skillful evasive action

to skedaddle

vsto shake

Informal

14 9.3

To run away quickly because you are afraid

means escaping by clever evasive skill rather than panicked flight

to skitter away

vsto shake

1 5.8

To move quickly and lightly away, often because something scares you

involves skilful evasion to escape or get rid, not only quick frightened movement

to throw off

vsto shake

1 3.8

To quickly remove something you have or that bothers you

focuses on escaping someone or something by skillful evasive action

to duck and dive

vsto shake

8.4

To move quickly and skillfully to avoid things or difficult problems

is about escaping fully rather than only dodging threats with quick moves

Idioms

to shake a leg

Archaic

9 6.5

To hurry when someone tells you to

to shake like a leaf

Informal

3 4.6

To tremble a lot because you are afraid, nervous, or cold

fair shake of the sauce bottle

Australian

9.9

A fair chance to take part or succeed

to give one's head a shake

Informal

8.6

Make yourself stop worrying and start thinking clearly

to shake the pagoda tree

Informal

9.9

To make people react to show hidden problems

to shake the plum tree

8.7

To make ripe fruit or other things fall from a tree by moving its branches quickly

to shake off the dust from one's feet

Literature

9.8

Leave a place after a bad experience and not return

Phrasal Verbs

to shake one's head

284 1.9

Move your head from side to side to show you do not agree

to shake hands

138 1.0

To take someone's hand and move it up and down as a greeting or to show agreement

to shake up

Informal

55 4.3

To change how a group or system is arranged to make it work better

to shake off

41 3.6

Make something unwanted go away, like an illness, a feeling, or a person following you

to shake up

41 4.2

To upset someone strongly and change how they feel

to shake things up

Informal

26 4.2

Make big changes to try to create excitement or improvement

to shake out

10 2.9

Remove dust and crumbs by shaking something

to shake up

10 3.5

To move something quickly so it becomes fluffier or looser

to shake on

7 3.9

Agree to a deal by holding and moving someone's hand

to shake hands

Specialized

1 5.8

To exchange messages between two systems to start a secure connection and agree on security keys

to shake out the rug

1 2.0

To clean a rug by lifting it and beating dust and crumbs out

to shake out the wrinkle

3.0

Remove small folds from clothes by shaking them

to shake off the dust

Informal

6.4

To leave past problems behind and start again

Compounds

fair shake

Informal

16 6.0

An equal chance to succeed and be treated the same as others

shake-up

15 4.3

A major change in how people run an organization

milk shake

1 1.0

A sweet cold drink you get by mixing milk with ice cream or fruit

How Free

escape

320 1.1

to shake off

41 3.6

to shake

Informal

392 4.6

to evade

52 4.4

to slip away

32 3.4

Surface Forms

shake infinitive

shaking present participle

shakes third person singular

shook past

shaken past participle

Etymology

Shake: The idea of 'shaking someone off' comes from physically moving away by quick movement, so to shake someone means to escape from them or get rid of them by moving fast.