Meaning

noun a tremulous sound

noun a musical note having the time value of an eighth of a whole note

verb give off unsteady sounds, alternating in amplitude or frequency

originFrom Middle English quaveren, frequentative form of quaven, cwavien (“to tremble”), equivalent to quave + -er. Cognate with Low German quabbeln (“to quiver”), German quabbeln, quappeln (“to quiver”). More at quave, quab, quiver.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0