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wake²

(wāk)

1. The visible track of turbulence left by something moving through water: the wake of a ship.

2. A track, course, or condition left behind something that has passed: The war left destruction and famine in its wake.

Idiom:

in the wake of

1. Following directly on.

2. In the aftermath of; as a consequence of.

[Possibly from Middle Low German, hole in the ice, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse vök.]

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wake2

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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