SHIVERS

shiver 1 |ˈ sh ivər| verb [ intrans. ] (of a person or animal) shake slightly and uncontrollably as a result of being cold, frightened, or excited : they shivered in the damp foggy cold. See note at shake . noun a momentary trembling movement : she gave a little shiver as the wind flicked at her bare arms | the way he looked at her sent shivers down her spine. • ( the shivers) a spell or an attack of trembling, typically as a result of fear or horror : a look that gave him the shivers. DERIVATIVES shiverer noun shiveringly adverb shivery |ˈ sh iv(ə)rē| adjective ORIGIN Middle English chivere, perhaps an alteration of dialect chavele [to chatter,] from Old English ceafl [jaw.] shiver 2 noun (usu. shivers) each of the small fragments into which something such as glass is shattered when broken; a splinter. verb [ intrans. ] rare break into such splinters or fragments : the world seemed to shiver into a million splinters of prismatic color. PHRASES shiver my (or me) timbers a mock oath attributed to sailors. ORIGIN Middle English : from a Germanic base meaning ‘to split’ ; related to German Schiefer ‘slate.’