Definitions Related words Phrases Mentions Lyrics History Colors (New!)

Literary notes about tremble (AI summary)

The term “tremble” is masterfully employed across a range of literary works to convey both physical sensation and emotional intensity. It frequently denotes a bodily reaction—a subtle, involuntary quiver that betrays inner turmoil or anticipation, as seen when a character’s lip or hand shudders in anxiety ([1], [2], [3]), or when even the mere thought of a daunting task makes someone’s hand shake with nervousness ([4], [5]). At times, it evokes vast natural or cosmic forces, capturing a landscape or the very foundations of existence as they quiver before overwhelming power ([6], [7], [8]), or imbuing the scene with an almost mythic sense of grandeur as in celestial bodies trembling at the approach of fate ([9], [10]). In other instances, trembling symbolizes a deep emotional response—ranging from terror and grief to ecstatic delight—in which the physical tremor mirrors internal states of passion or fear ([11], [12], [13]). Overall, the word serves as a versatile metaphor that bridges the tangible and the ineffable in literature.
  1. Looby's face grew pale, and his nether lip began to tremble.
    — from The Adventures of Ferdinand Count Fathom — Complete by T. Smollett
  2. Bobbie jumped forward and caught it up, and waved it; her hands did not tremble now.
    — from The Railway Children by E. Nesbit
  3. His thin legs had begun to tremble and turn weak, causing his small body to reel.
    — from Maggie: A Girl of the Streets by Stephen Crane
  4. For nearly thirteen years past, I have never once written to you without feeling my hand tremble and my eyes fill.
    — from Juliette Drouet's Love-Letters to Victor Hugo by Juliette Drouet and Louis Guimbaud
  5. The idea alone of a step to take, a letter to write, or a word to say, made me tremble.
    — from The Confessions of Jean Jacques Rousseau — Complete by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
  6. Heaven and earth tremble with fear when Indra smites Vṛitra like a tree with his bolt.
    — from A History of Sanskrit Literature by Arthur Anthony Macdonell
  7. The island appeared to tremble to its very foundation.
    — from The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne
  8. Heaven and earth themselves bow down before him, Before his might the very mountains tremble.
    — from A History of Sanskrit Literature by Arthur Anthony Macdonell
  9. There shrines and palaces and towers (Time-eaten towers that tremble not!)
    — from The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, The Raven Edition by Edgar Allan Poe
  10. Where I sorrow, springs the alder; Where I tremble, sprouts the aspen; Where I weep, the pine is verdant; Where I suffer, sighs the birch-tree.
    — from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson
  11. “I should hope not; but really when I look around among my acquaintance, I tremble.
    — from Emma by Jane Austen
  12. she cried with earnestness, "I will—I will tell you the truth—all the truth; I am glad to tell you—glad, though I tremble."
    — from Villette by Charlotte Brontë
  13. Old wishes, ghosts of broken plans, And phantom hopes assemble; And that child's heart within the man's Begins to move and tremble.
    — from The Early Poems of Alfred Lord Tennyson by Baron Alfred Tennyson Tennyson

More usage examples

Also see: Google, News, Images, Wikipedia, Reddit, BlueSky


Home   Reverse Dictionary / Thesaurus   Datamuse   Word games   Spruce   Feedback   Dark mode   Random word   Help


Color thesaurus

Use OneLook to find colors for words and words for colors

See an example

Literary notes

Use OneLook to learn how words are used by great writers

See an example

Word games

Try our innovative vocabulary games

Play Now

Read the latest OneLook newsletter issue: Threepeat Redux