/ əˈweɪk; NAmE / adjective , verb
■ adjective
[ not before noun ] not asleep (especially immediately before or after sleeping) :
to be half / fully awake
to be wide awake (= fully awake)
I was still awake when he came to bed.
The noise was keeping everyone awake .
I was finding it hard to stay awake .
He lies awake at night worrying about his job.
She was awake (= not unconscious) during the operation on her leg.
■ verb ( awoke / əˈwəʊk; NAmE əˈwoʊk/, awoken / əˈwəʊkən; NAmE əˈwoʊkən/) ( formal )
1.
awake (sb) (from / to sth) to wake up; to make sb wake up :
[ v ]
I awoke from a deep sleep.
[ v to inf ]
He awoke to find her gone.
[ vn ]
Her voice awoke the sleeping child.
2.
if an emotion awakes or sth awakes an emotion, you start to feel that emotion :
[ vn ]
His speech is bound to awake old fears and hostilities.
[also v ]
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PHRASAL VERBS
- awake to sth
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WHICH WORD
awake / awaken / wake up / waken
Wake (up) is the most common of these verbs. It can mean somebody has finished sleeping:
What time do you usually wake up?
or that somebody or something has disturbed your sleep:
The children woke me up.
•
I was woken (up) by the telephone.
The verb awake is usually only used in writing and in the past tense awoke :
She awoke to a day of brilliant sunshine.
Waken and awaken are much more formal. Awaken is used especially in literature:
The Prince awakened Sleeping Beauty with a kiss.
Awake is also an adjective:
I was awake half the night worrying.
•
Is the baby awake yet?
Waking is not used in this way.
Look also at asleep and the verb sleep .
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WORD ORIGIN
Old English āwæcnan , āwacian , both used in the sense come out of sleep ( from a- to, towards and wake ).