Awake/awaken

Question

What is the difference between them?Note: I have searched the dictionary but i still don't understand the differences.Awake, awoke, awokenAwaken, awakened, awakened(Confused face)

Mister Micawber · Accepted Answer

The American Heritage Dictionary says it best:

Usage Note:
The pairs wake, waken and awake, awaken have formed a bewildering array since the Middle English period. All four words have similar meanings, though there are some differences in use. Only wake is used in the sense "to be awake," as in expressions like waking (not wakening) and sleeping, every waking hour. Wake is also more common than waken when used together with up, and awake and awaken never occur in this context: She woke up (rarely wakened up; never awakened up or awoke up). Some writers have suggested that waken should be used only transitively (as in The alarm wakened him) and awaken only intransitively (as in He awakened at dawn), but there is ample literary precedent for usages such as He wakened early and They did not awaken her. In figurative senses awake and awaken are more prevalent: With the governor's defeat the party awoke to the strength of the opposition to its position on abortion. The scent of the gardenias awakened my memory of his unexpected appearance that afternoon years ago.

Regional Note:
Regional American dialects vary in the way that certain verbs form their principal parts. Northern dialects seem to favor forms that change the internal vowel in the verb

hence dove for the past tense of dive, and woke for wake: They woke up with a start. Southern dialects, on the other hand, tend to prefer forms that add an -ed to form the past tense and the past participle of these same verbs: The children dived into the swimming hole. The baby waked up early.

Michaelting · Answer

I see. So they are literally the same thing. I think I will go wake and awake. Thanks~

Andriy Lapin · Answer

The verbs differ in etymology only. 'Awake' comes from Middle English awaken, while 'awaken' - from ME awakenen. Their distribution is roughtly the same. Both can be intransitive:

The elderly bellboy awoke from his dreams. — Sinclair Lewis

England … had awakened from its age-old isolation.— Van Wyck Brooks

and transitive:

The sound of heavy footsteps in the driveway awoke the watchdogs.

...did more than any other to awaken the churches of this faith to the value of their heritage. — C.A.Dinsmore

Another obvious difference is that 'awake' is, unlike 'awaken', is irregular.

Respectfully, Gleb Chebrikoff

Awake/awaken

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