Definition of the word wake (as a noun)
Most of this post focuses on the irregular verb wake, but before moving forward, let's begin by noting its various uses.
The word wake can also be a noun that refers to, “a gathering or social event that is held before or after someone’s funeral”, similar to vigil.
Its other use as a noun is the "track left by a moving body (such as a ship) in a fluid (such as water)", as in the following quote:
The wake of a ship, by which I think the sailors understand the stream drawn after the stern by its motion, follows the ship throughout her voyage.
To be woke is also a slang term, as in ‘politically woke‘ or especially aware of current social issues.
When to use “woke” or “woken”?
The irreglar, transitive (sometimes intransitive) verb wake, means to ‘come out of sleep or a state like or suggestive of sleep, as a stupor or trance; awake ...often with wake up’.
- Wake is the present simple and simple or base verb.
- Woke is the simple past conjugation;
- Woken is the past participle (pairs with auxiliary verbs to form perfect and/or progressive tenses).
What about awake vs. wake?
Excellent question! My mom always says she's not 'awake' until she's had her morning coffee. I'm not a morning person either—maybe it's a genetic thing. Some mornings, it takes me a couple of hours to wake up and get the day going.
In other words, in "I'm not awake yet", awake modifies the subject, "I", as an adjective, or as adjectives do. Wake is the present tense and main verb form, however it's regularly followed with the preposition 'up', to form the common phrasal wake up, or woke up up in the simple past tense.
Wake, woke, woken (verb conjugations)
What’s the difference between woke and woken?
Something woke her in the middle of the night.
They had woken as fast as they could, but still showed up late to class.
“They’d woken” = they + had woken. To form the past perfect tense or aspect, we combine had with the past participle form of the verb, which here is woken. ‘They had woke up to the sounds of the birds chirping,’ may sound correct, but technically it should be ‘had woken up to’, since this uses the auxiliary verb (had) with the past participle (woken) to form the past perfect tense.
Another example is ‘She had woke up earlier than she had planned, and ended up being grumpy for the rest of the day.’ This, technically speaking, is improper grammar, and the correct form is ‘woken‘ (the auxiliary, had, indicates the pp. form of the verb should be used).
Sentence examples: wake, woke, woken
| Word choice | Example sentences |
|---|---|
| wake | |
| wake (often with 'up') |
She went upstairs to wake Milton. It was a nice way to wake up. We should really try and wake up early tomorrow. |
| woke |
He woke to the sound of beating drums and clammering bangs. We woke and rushed to get ready. Apparently they just woke up. |
| woken |
They’ve finally woken up to the truth. I’d just woken up and was still drowsy. He’d woken at 5:00 a.m. on the sofa with his tie still up to his neck. |
Quotes from history, literature, & media
‘Oh, you’ve woke up, at last, have you?’ said Sam.
We are so terribly dull, and anything will serve to wake us up a bit.
I had not the heart to wake him.
Ah! when the dream is over—and I wake up to find myself an average magazine writer.
Wake up and smell the decaf, folks.
He had woken in the night and seen it standing at his bedside.
Waking and sleeping she had pictured his arrest.
I came down from my clouds with..a sense of waking from perfect dreams to the realisation of a hard, inimical world.
Synonyms of wake
- rise
- arise
- to regain consciousness
- to become awake
Phrases with the word wake
| Phrase | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| in the wake of | in the aftermath or following something or someone | In the wake of the pandemic, many businesses had to close down permanently. |
| wake up and smell the coffee | to become aware of and face reality, especially when it is unpleasant | “You need to wake up and smell the coffee – you can’t keep spending money like this.” |
| behind the wake | following behind a boat or ship, often in a motorboat or another vessel | We followed in a small motorboat behind the wake of the yacht. |
| leave in one’s wake | to leave a lasting impression or effect on something or someone | Her art left a powerful legacy in its wake. |
| a wake-up call | a sudden event or realization that prompts someone to take action or make changes | Losing his job was a wake-up call for him to start pursuing his dreams. |
Origin of the word “wake”
“To become awake,” a Middle English merger of Old English wacan “to become awake, arise, be born, originate,” and Old English wacian “to be or remain awake,” both from Proto-Germanic.
Practice: Wake (verb conjugations)
A loud noise ______ her from a deep sleep.
Have you ever ______ up and not known where you were?
He ______ up at the same time every morning without an alarm.
My favorite part of the day is ______ up to the smell of coffee.
Please be quiet so you don’t ______ the baby.
Sources
-
Vogeler, Martha S. "Harrison, Frederic (1831–1923), positivist and author." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 23 Sep. 2004; Accessed 13 Sep. 2025. Oxford English Dictionary, “Realize (v.2),” June 2025.
Yash, D. "How to Use Woke vs. Woken (Irregular Verbs, Explained)." Grammarflex, Sep 15, 2025, https://grammarflex.com/woke-vs-woken/.
