How to pronounce shake
Say it like SHAYK. Shake is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress.
Click the play button next to American or British to hear how to pronounce shake. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- SHAYK
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Shake pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- SHAYKSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "ay" in day.
American vs British pronunciation of shake
American and British speakers say shake in essentially the same way: /ʃeɪk/ in the US and /ʃeɪk/ in the UK.
British respelling: SHAYK.
What does shake mean?
- move or cause to move back and forth“The chemist shook the flask vigorously”“My hands were shaking”
- move with or as if with a tremor“his hands shook”
- shake or vibrate rapidly and intensively“The old engine was juddering”
- building material used as siding or roofing
- frothy drink of milk and flavoring and sometimes fruit or ice cream
- a note that alternates rapidly with another note a semitone above it
Where does shake come from?
Cognate with Scots schake, schack (“to shake”), West Frisian schaekje (“to shake”), Dutch schaken (“to elope, make clean, shake”), Low German schaken (“to move, shift, push, shake”) and schacken (“to shake, shock”), Old Norse skaka (“to sha
Similar and opposite words
Similar meaning
Words that rhyme with shake
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of shake.
Questions about saying shake
How do you pronounce shake?
Say SHAYK. The American pronunciation is /ʃeɪk/. In British English it is /ʃeɪk/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in shake?
Shake is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress. Broken into parts: SHAYK.
Do Americans and Brits say shake the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /ʃeɪk/ and the British form is /ʃeɪk/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.