wake
gb/wˈeɪk/ us/wˈeɪk/
A2
English
~ 2300
Senses
0 senses
Verb
A2
action
1
Stop sleeping and become conscious
To stop sleeping and open your eyes.
Usage pattern:
to wake [someone/something] up
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse 'wake' with 'wake up'. 'Wake' can be used alone, but 'wake up' is more common in everyday speech.
Synonyms
awaken (Slightly more formal or literary than 'wake'.)
Antonyms
fall asleep (Describes starting to sleep, the opposite of waking.)
Collocations
wake up early
|wake suddenly
|wake feeling refreshed
|wake in the night
Themes
daily life
|health
|daily_life
Examples
- I usually wake at 6 a.m. without an alarm.
- She woke suddenly when she heard a loud bang.
- You need to wake your brother for school.
- He woke in the middle of the night and couldn't fall back asleep.
Learner examples
- I wake at seven every day.
- She wakes when the sun comes up.
- Please wake me at six o'clock.
Verb
A2
action
2
Cause someone to stop sleeping
To make someone stop sleeping.
Usage pattern:
to wake [someone] (up)
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes forget that 'wake' can be followed by 'up', but 'up' is optional.
Synonyms
rouse (More formal and less common in everyday conversation.)
Antonyms
put to sleep (To cause someone to start sleeping.)
Collocations
wake the baby
|wake a friend
|wake guests early
Themes
daily life
|daily_life
|health
Examples
- Don't wake the baby, she's finally asleep.
- He woke me by knocking on my door.
- They woke the campers before sunrise.
Learner examples
- Please don't wake the baby.
- My dog wakes me every morning.
- I will wake you when dinner is ready.
Noun
B1
entity
3
Trail of water behind a boat
The waves made behind a boat as it moves.
Common mistake:
Learners may confuse this with the verb 'wake'. Context about boats or water helps clarify meaning.
Synonyms
wash (Less common term for the disturbed water behind a vessel.)
Collocations
leave a wake
|in the wake of the ship
Themes
transportation
|nature
|travel
Examples
- The speedboat left a huge wake behind it.
- Seaweed floated in the ship's wake.
- Swimmers should avoid crossing the ferry's wake.
Learner examples
- The boat made a big wake.
- We saw fish jumping in the wake.
- The ship's wake was very long.
Noun
B2
event
4
Funeral-related gathering for the deceased
A meeting of family and friends before or after a funeral to remember someone who died.
Common mistake:
Learners may confuse this with 'awake'. This meaning relates to funerals, not sleeping.
Synonyms
vigil (Implies staying awake and watchful, sometimes overnight, before burial; more formal or religious.)
Collocations
hold a wake
|family wake
Themes
culture
|relationships
|religion
Examples
- The family invited everyone to the wake after the funeral.
- A traditional Irish wake can last all night.
- They shared stories about him during the wake.
Learner examples
- We went to the wake after the funeral.
- The wake was at her house.
- Many people came to the wake.
Noun
B2
state
5
Aftermath or results of an event
The time or events that happen after something important, often bad, has happened.
Common mistake:
Learners may think this refers to waking from sleep. In this meaning, it is about events after something else happens.
Synonyms
aftermath ('Afternath' is more formal and often used for negative events.)
Collocations
in the wake of disaster
|economic wake
Themes
news
|history
|core_vocabulary
|time
Examples
- In the wake of the storm, thousands were left homeless.
- The law was changed in the wake of several scandals.
- Economic reforms came in the wake of the crisis.
Learner examples
- In the wake of the war, many people moved away.
- Prices went up in the wake of the new tax.
- In the wake of the flood, the town needed help.
Grammar
Dictionary form
wake
IPA
GB/wˈeɪk/
US/wˈeɪk/
Syllables & stress
wake (1 syllable)
Stress on 1st syllable (wake)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: wake
- Plural: wakes
Verb
- Base: wake
- 3rd Person Singular: wakes
- Present Participle: waking
- Past: waked, woke
- Past Participle: waked, woken
Word family
Expressions
in the wake of [something]
1/ˈɪn ðə wˈeɪk əv sˈʌmθɪŋ/
fixed phrase
Happening after and because of something else
Happening after something else, usually bad, and because of it.
Examples
- Many changes were made in the wake of the accident.
- In the wake of the scandal, he resigned from his position.
wake someone up
1/wˈeɪk sˈʌmwˌʌn ˈʌp/
phrasal verb
Cause someone to stop sleeping
To make someone stop sleeping.
Examples
- Can you wake me up at 7 a.m.?
- Don't wake her up yet; she's still tired.
wake up
1/wˈeɪk ˈʌp/
phrasal verb
Stop sleeping and become conscious
To stop sleeping and open your eyes.
Examples
- I usually wake up early on weekdays.
- Wake up! You're going to be late for school.
wake up
1/wˈeɪk ˈʌp/
phrasal verb
stop sleeping
To stop being asleep, or to make another person stop sleeping.
Examples
- I usually wake up before my alarm goes off.
- Please wake me up at six tomorrow.
- The baby woke up during the night.