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shaky

/ˈʃeɪki/
/ˈʃeɪki/
IPA guide

Other forms: shakier; shakiest

Something shaky is trembling — or just feels like it. When we're not confident, we feel shaky.

Being shaky is something that happens to us all. The first day of a job or class can make anyone feel shaky — even the teacher or boss. When you get extremely nervous, your hands might literally shake. That's not fun, but it might help you remember what shaky means. A building in an earthquake and a tree in the wind can also be shaky. One person we hope is not shaky — in either way — is a surgeon.

Definitions of shaky
  1. adjective
    vibrating slightly and irregularly; as e.g. with fear or cold or like the leaves of an aspen in a breeze
    “seemed shaky on her feet”
    unsteady
    subject to change or variation
  2. adjective
    inclined to shake as from weakness or defect
    “a wobbly chair with shaky legs”
    synonyms: rickety, wobbly, wonky
    unstable
    lacking stability or fixity or firmness
  3. adjective
    not secure; beset with difficulties
    “a shaky marriage”
    synonyms: precarious
    insecure, unsafe
    lacking in security or safety
Pronunciation
US
/ˈʃeɪki/
UK
/ˈʃeɪki/
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