ˈwākən verb
( wakened ; wakened ; wakening -k(ə)niŋ ; wakens )
Etymology: Middle English waknen, wakenen, from Old English wæcnan, wæcnian; akin to Old Norse vakna to awaken, Gothic ga waknan; derivative from the root of English wake (I)
intransitive verb
1. : to become active, aware, or animated
a vigorous artist's shaping spirit may chance to waken — Warren Beck
waken to the point about seven minutes after — H.J.Laski
2. : to cease to sleep : awake
had wakened and heard the lion — Ernest Hemingway
— often used with up
pleasant to waken up in that bed — Willa Cather
transitive verb
1. : to stir or rouse out of sleep : wake
wakened at 5:30 by reveille — Harper's
2. : to excite into life, activity, or awareness
stained glass in churches always wakened some strange fancy in his mind — T.B.Costain
waken the reader's sympathy for the man or woman involved — C.B.Tinker
— often used with up
wakens up … government agencies to the wanton waste — Canadian Forum
Synonyms: see stir