Adjacent Words

vibrate definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: shake, quiver, or throb; move back and forth rapidly, usually in an uncontrolled manner
2: move or swing from side to side regularly; "the needle on the meter was oscillating" [syn: oscillate, vibrate]
3: be undecided about something; waver between conflicting positions or courses of action; "He oscillates between accepting the new position and retirement" [syn: hover, vibrate, vacillate, oscillate]
4: sound with resonance; "The sound resonates well in this theater" [syn: resonate, vibrate]
5: feel sudden intense sensation or emotion; "he was thrilled by the speed and the roar of the engine" [syn: thrill, tickle, vibrate]

Merriam Webster's

verb (vibrated; vibrating) Etymology: Latin vibratus, past participle of vibrare to brandish, wave, rock — more at wipe Date: 1616 transitive verb 1. to swing or move to and fro 2. to emit with or as if with a vibratory motion 3. to mark or measure by oscillation <a pendulum vibrating seconds> 4. to set in vibration intransitive verb 1. a. to move to and fro or from side to side ; oscillate b. fluctuate, vacillate <vibrate between two choices> 2. to have an effect as or as if of vibration <music, when soft voices die, vibrates in the memory — P. B. Shelley> 3. to be in a state of vibration ; quiver 4. to respond sympathetically ; thrill <vibrate to the opportunity> Synonyms: see swing

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. 1 intr. & tr. move or cause to move continuously and rapidly to and fro; oscillate. 2 intr. Physics move unceasingly to and fro, esp. rapidly. 3 intr. (of a sound) throb; continue to be heard. 4 intr. (foll. by with) quiver, thrill (vibrating with passion). 5 intr. (of a pendulum) swing to and fro. Derivatives: vibrative adj. Etymology: L vibrare vibrat- shake, swing

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Vibrate Vi"brate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Vibrate; p. pr. & vb. n. Vibrating.] [L. vibratus, p. p. of vibrare, v. t. & v. i., to snake, brandish, vibrate; akin to Skr. vip to tremble, Icel. veifa to wave, vibrate. See Waive and cf. Whip, v. t.] 1. To brandish; to move to and fro; to swing; as, to vibrate a sword or a staff. 2. To mark or measure by moving to and fro; as, a pendulum vibrating seconds. 3. To affect with vibratory motion; to set in vibration. Breath vocalized, that is, vibrated or undulated, may . . . impress a swift, tremulous motion. --Holder. Star to star vibrates light. --Tennyson.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Vibrate Vi"brate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Vibrate; p. pr. & vb. n. Vibrating.] [L. vibratus, p. p. of vibrare, v. t. & v. i., to snake, brandish, vibrate; akin to Skr. vip to tremble, Icel. veifa to wave, vibrate. See Waive and cf. Whip, v. t.] 1. To brandish; to move to and fro; to swing; as, to vibrate a sword or a staff. 2. To mark or measure by moving to and fro; as, a pendulum vibrating seconds. 3. To affect with vibratory motion; to set in vibration. Breath vocalized, that is, vibrated or undulated, may . . . impress a swift, tremulous motion. --Holder. Star to star vibrates light. --Tennyson.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Vibrate Vi"brate, v. i. 1. To move to and fro, or from side to side, as a pendulum, an elastic rod, or a stretched string, when disturbed from its position of rest; to swing; to oscillate. 2. To have the constituent particles move to and fro, with alternate compression and dilation of parts, as the air, or any elastic body; to quiver. 3. To produce an oscillating or quivering effect of sound; as, a whisper vibrates on the ear. --Pope. 4. To pass from one state to another; to waver; to fluctuate; as, a man vibrates between two opinions.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(vibrates, vibrating, vibrated) If something vibrates or if you vibrate it, it shakes with repeated small, quick movements. The ground shook and the cliffs seemed to vibrate... The noise vibrated the table. VERB: V, V n • vibration (vibrations) The vibrations of the vehicles rattled the shop windows. N-VAR

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. n. 1. Oscillate, swing, move to and fro, move backward and forward. 2. Impinge, sound, quiver, produce a vibratory effect. 3. Vacillate, hesitate, waver, fluctuate. II. v. a. 1. Brandish, swing, move to and fro. 2. Cause to quiver, undulate, affect with vibratory motion. 3. Measure by swinging.

Moby Thesaurus

bob, bobble, bounce, bump, careen, chatter, coggle, continue, dangle, didder, falter, fluctuate, flutter, have an ague, hustle, jactitate, jar, jog, joggle, jolt, jostle, jounce, jump, librate, lurch, nutate, occur often, oscillate, pendulate, pitch, pulsate, pulse, quake, quaver, quiver, recur, reel, resonate, reverberate, rock, roll, shake, shiver, shock, shudder, swag, sway, swing, throb, toss, tremble, tremor, twitter, vacillate, wag, waggle, wave, waver, wobble