shiver
shivering; shivered; shivers
People shiver, or shake and tremble, when they're very cold. You might shiver in the snow if you forget to wear your winter coat.
While you are most likely to shiver in the cold, you might also shiver from excitement or even fear. The involuntary shudder our bodies make in chilly weather is a response meant to raise our body temperature to a safe level. Shiver was originally chiveren, from the Old English ceafl, or "jaw." This is thought to be connected to the chattering your teeth do when you shiver.
Definitions of shiver
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shake, as from cold“The children are shivering--turn on the heat!”
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synonyms:
shudder
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type of:
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move involuntarily, move reflexively
move in an uncontrolled manner
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move involuntarily, move reflexively
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tremble convulsively, as from fear or excitement
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a reflex motion caused by cold or fear or excitement
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type of:
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inborn reflex, innate reflex, instinctive reflex, physiological reaction, reflex, reflex action, reflex response, unconditioned reflex
an automatic instinctive unlearned reaction to a stimulus
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inborn reflex, innate reflex, instinctive reflex, physiological reaction, reflex, reflex action, reflex response, unconditioned reflex
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an almost pleasurable sensation of fright
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘shiver'.
Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors.
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