Awaken

awaken - Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

Etymology

From Middle English awakenen or awaknen, from Old English awæcnan or awæcnian, from a- plus wæcnan or wæcnian.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /əˈweɪkən/
• ||

• Rhymes: -eɪkən

Verb

awaken (third-person singular simple present awakens, present participle awakening, simple past and past participle awakened) (but see usage notes)

1. (transitive) To cause to become awake.She awakened him by ringing the bell.
2. (intransitive) To stop sleeping; awake.Each morning he awakens with a smile on his face.
3. (transitive, figurative) To bring into action (something previously dormant); to stimulate. quotations ▼Awaken your entrepreneurial spirit!We hope to *awaken your interest in our programme.*
4. (theology) To call to a sense of sin.
5. (rare) past participle of awake quotations ▼
6. (transitive, figurative) To cause to become aware.
7. (intransitive, figurative) To become aware.

I suddenly awoke to the possibilities of the new invention.

Usage notes

This verb, for many speakers, has been essentially conflated with the verb awake, and has adopted parts of awake’s conjugation. awaken remains the bare form (and also in awakens and awakening), but its simple past and past participle are replaced by those of awake: awoke and awoken, respectively.

For many others, awaken has simply supplanted awake, without adopting conjugational elements from awake.

Synonyms

• (transitive, to cause to become awake): knock up, uprouse; see also Thesaurus:awaken
• (intransitive, to stop sleeping): awake, stir; see also Thesaurus:wake
• (to bring into action): animate, energize; see also Thesaurus:enliven

Antonyms

• (stop sleeping): fall asleep

Translations

show ▼±transitive: to cause to become awake

show ▼±intransitive: to stop sleeping

show ▼±transitive: to cause to become conscious