316: quiver Oct 20, 2015
Certain
sounds will carry certain meaning; that is the reason many
onomatopoetic words that denote noises begin with aspirated sounds, like
'p' and 'b' (such as pow and bang). 'Quiver' as a verb also has its
meaning tied to its phonetic pronunciation. It comes through Middle
English from the Old English, 'cwifer' meaning ‘nimble, quick’. The
initial 'qu-' sound is probably symbolic of rapid movement as is found
in 'quaver and quick'.