shudder
English · Thesaurus
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shudder
- /ˈʃʌdə/ UK
- /ˈʃʊdə/ Northern England
- /ˈʃədə/ Wales
- /ˈʃɐdə/ Australia, New Zealand
- /ˈʃʌdɚ/ US
- [ˈʃʌɾɚ] US
- /ˈʃʌdəɾ/ Scotland
Sounds like shutter (flapping) · Rhymes with -ʌdə(ɹ)
Where it comes from
From Middle English schoderen, schuderen, possibly from Middle Dutch schudderen and/or Middle Low German schodderen, iterative forms of the verb at hand in Dutch schudden, Low German schüdden (both “to shake”), German schütten (“to pour”), from Proto-West Germanic *skuddjan, from Proto-Germanic *skudjaną, from Proto-Indo-European *skewdʰ-. From Low German are also borrowed German schaudern (“to shudder”), Danish skudre, Swedish skudda.
Alternatively, possibly from an unrecorded Old English *sċudrian, an iterative variant to Old English sċūdan (“to shudder, quake”), from Proto-West Germanic *skudrōn (“to shake, tremble”), from the same source as the Middle Dutch and Middle Low German terms above.
verb shudders · shuddering · shuddered
noun shudders
- A shivering tremor, often from fear or horror. Seeing the spider under his pillow gave John a shudder.
- A moment of almost pleasurable fear; a frisson. They name thee before me, / A knell to mine ear; / A shudder comes o'er me— / Why wert thou so dear?
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: shiver, dither, tremor, frisson, tingle, thrill, throb, quiver, chill, tremble, cringe, shake, vibrate, twitch, tick, quake
Translations
Every language
verb to shake nervously, as if from fear
| Español | temblar |
|---|---|
| Português | tremer, tiritar |
| Français | frissonner, trembler |
| Deutsch | schaudern |
| Italiano | tremare |
| Română | tremura |
| Русский | содрога́ться sodrogátʹsja, дрожа́ть drožátʹ |
| עברית | הִתְפַּלֵּץ hitpalétz |
verb to vibrate jerkily
| Français | frissonner, trembler |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | zittern |
| Română | tremura, vibra |
noun shivering tremor
| Español | escalofrío |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 戰慄 /战栗 or 戰栗 /战栗 zhànlì, 觳觫 húsù |
| हिन्दी | सिहरन sihran, कँपकँपी kãpkãpī |
| Português | arrepio, calafrio |
| Français | tremblement, frisson |
| Deutsch | Schauder |
| Italiano | brivido, sussulto, tremolio |
| Română | tremur, fiori |
| Русский | содрога́ние sodrogánije, дрожь drožʹ |
noun moment of almost pleasurable fear; a frisson
| Français | frisson |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | (wohliger) Schauder |
| Română | fior |
Talk about this word "shudder." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/shudder. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. shudder. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/shudder "shudder." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/shudder.Cite this
@misc{shudder_2026,
title = {shudder},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/shudder},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
