quaver
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Quaver — Qua ver, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Quavered}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Quavering}.] [OE. quaven to shake, to tremble; cf. LG. quabbeln to shake, to be soft, of fat substances, quabbe a fat lump of flesh, a dewlap, D. kwabbe, and E. quiver, v.] 1. To tremble;… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Quaver — Qua ver, v. t. To utter with quavers. [1913 Webster] We shall hear her quavering them . . . to some sprightly airs of the opera. Addison. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Quaver — Qua ver, n. 1. A shake, or rapid and tremulous vibration, of the voice, or of an instrument of music. [1913 Webster] 2. (Mus.) An eighth note. See {Eighth}. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
quaver — (v.) to vibrate, tremble, early 15c., probably frequentative of cwavien to tremble, shake (early 13c.), probably related to Low Ger. quabbeln tremble, possibly of imitative origin. Meaning sing in trills or quavers first recorded 1530s. Related:… … Etymology dictionary
quaver — vb *shake, tremble, shudder, quake, totter, quiver, shiver, wobble, teeter, shimmy, dither Analogous words: falter, waver, vacillate, *hesitate: vibrate, fluctuate, sway (see SWING) … New Dictionary of Synonyms
quaver — ► VERB ▪ (of a voice) tremble. ► NOUN 1) a tremble in a voice. 2) Music, chiefly Brit. a note having the value of an eighth of a semibreve or half a crotchet, represented by a large dot with a hooked stem. DERIVATIVES quavery adjective. ORIGIN … English terms dictionary
quaver — [kwā′vər] vi. [ME quaveren, freq. of Early ME cwafien, to shake, tremble < OE * cwafian, prob. < IE base * gwēbh , wobbly, flabby, tadpole > Ger quappe & Du kwabbe, tadpole] 1. to shake or tremble 2. to be tremulous: said of the voice 3 … English World dictionary
quaver — I UK [ˈkweɪvə(r)] / US [ˈkweɪvər] verb [intransitive] Word forms quaver : present tense I/you/we/they quaver he/she/it quavers present participle quavering past tense quavered past participle quavered if your voice quavers, it is not steady… … English dictionary
quaver — [[t]kwe͟ɪvə(r)[/t]] quavers, quavering, quavered 1) VERB If someone s voice quavers, it sounds unsteady, usually because they are nervous or uncertain. Her voice quavered and she fell silent. Syn: tremble N COUNT Quaver is also a noun. There was… … English dictionary
quaver — [15] Quaver was derived from an earlier and now obsolete Middle English quave ‘tremble’. This was of Germanic origin (Low German has the related quabbeln ‘tremble’), and probably started life as a vocal realization of the action of trembling. The … The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins
