wake (subs.) Copy link Outline I. A watch, esp. on solemn occasionsII. A watch by a corpse (in Ireland)III. The wake of a ship • wake (subs.): I. A watch, esp. on solemn occasions: pervĭgĭlium, vĭgĭlia: v. watch. II. A watch by a corpse (in Ireland): *fūnebre pervigilium, f. vigilia. III. The wake of a ship: *tractus aquarum a tergo navis: you will see a long line of flame glisten white in the (falling) star's w., *videbis stellae flammarum longos a tergo albescere tractus. Phr.: to follow in the wake, *sequi pone, a tergo; subsequi: v. to follow.