Wakes

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. A transition from sleep to consciousness occurs when the mind becomes active and aware of surroundings, marking an end to resting phases
2. The process involves moving from a state of sleep into a state of alert awareness, characterized by heightened perception of the environment
3. The action of becoming conscious and alert after a period of sleep ; a social event held to mourn the deceased, typically involving visitors paying respects

Etymology: "Wakes" is the third-person singular present form of "wake" used as a verb, meaning to rouse from sleep. The verb "wake" is a merger of two Old English verbs that looked and sounded alike: "wacan," meaning to become awake, and "wacian," meaning to be watchful or keep vigil. Both trace back to a Proto-Germanic root, *wakaną, so the sense of rising from sleep and the sense of staying alert were once separate words that gradually blended into one. The "wakes" you might also meet as a noun is a different word altogether. It descends from Old English "wacu," meaning a watch or vigil, and it sits alongside a second, unrelated source. That second source is probably a Middle Low German or Middle Dutch word for a hole kept open in ice, related to Old Norse "vǫk," which gave the sense of a channel of open water left behind by a ship. The noun's meaning of a trail of disturbed water behind a moving vessel grew out of that image.

Synonyms: rises, awakens, arouses, stirs

Antonyms: sleeps, rests, naps