quaver

An eighth note with stem facing up, an eighth note with stem facing down, and a quaver rest.

Meanings

Noun

A trembling shake.
A trembling of the voice, as in speaking or singing.
an eighth note, drawn as a crotchet (quarter note) with a tail.

Verb

To shake in a trembling manner.
To use the voice in a trembling manner, as in speaking or singing.
To utter quaveringly.

Origin

From Middle English quaveren, frequentative form of quaven, cwavien, equivalent to quave + -er. Cognate with Low German quabbeln ("to quiver"), German quabbeln, quappeln. More at quave, quab, quiver.

Modern English dictionary

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