sob
verb (used without object)
to weep with a convulsive catching of the breath.
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sob
1 American
[sob]
/ sɒb /
verb (used without object)
-
sobs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
sobbed,
past participle, past
-
sobbing
present participle
-
to weep with a convulsive catching of the breath.
-
to make a sound resembling this.
verb (used with object)
-
sobs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
sobbed,
past participle, past
-
sobbing
present participle
-
to utter with sobs.
-
to put, send, etc., by sobbing or with sobs.
to sob oneself to sleep.
noun
-
sobs
plural
-
the act of sobbing; a convulsive catching of the breath in weeping.
-
any sound suggesting this.
S.O.B.
2
American
Or
SOB
abbreviation
(sometimes lowercase)
sob
1
British
/ sɒb /
verb
-
(intr) to weep with convulsive gasps
-
(tr) to utter with sobs
-
to cause (oneself) to be in a specified state by sobbing
to sob oneself to sleep
noun
s.o.b.
2
British
abbreviation
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
sobsimple
-
sobssimple
-
have sobbedperfect
-
has sobbedperfect
-
am sobbingprogressive
-
are sobbingprogressive
-
is sobbingprogressive
-
have been sobbingperfect progressive
-
has been sobbingperfect progressive
Past
-
sobbedsimple
-
had sobbedperfect
-
was sobbingprogressive
-
were sobbingprogressive
-
had been sobbingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sob
1150–1200; Middle English sobben, apparently imitative
Explanation
If you're so upset you're crying loudly, taking in big gasps of air and heaving your chest, you are sobbing. Picture a child on the playground who has fallen and can't find his or her mother. The child's face is red and streaked with tears, and he or she is gasping from crying so hard. This poor little boy or girl is sobbing uncontrollably. Sometimes, while trying not to cry, you might let out a single sob. A "sob story" is a story meant to make you feel bad for someone, so bad you might sob for them.
Vocabulary lists containing sob
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Suddenly, articulating what I saw—the creative writing projects I hoped to tackle, my pride at seeing my child launch into adulthood—I found myself stifling a sob.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
"It's part of her character, but what I didn't want to do was make a sob story."
From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026
Mary McNamara: I confess that my most audible sob came with the tender nod to the late, great Rob Reiner, who made his last screen appearance in Season 4, as business mentor Albert Schur.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026
“I’ll never forget this part of my life,” she said, and, behind sunglasses, began to sob.
From Slate ● Mar. 25, 2026
With a strangled sob the young mouse recoiled.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
“If you’re running a campaign and your candidate is seething at the other person, and all they can talk about is, ‘That S.O.B. is an idiot,’ they typically lose campaigns,” he said.
From New York Times ● Nov. 11, 2018
He famously savaged the hand that had fed him so well with S.O.B.
From The Guardian ● Dec. 16, 2010
He dropped in and out of favor, feuded with producers and famously satirized Hollywood in 1981's scathing "S.O.B."
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 16, 2010
"I had a lot of bitterness in me when I wrote the first draft," Edwards said of "S.O.B."
From Reuters ● Dec. 16, 2010
The lemon Truman handed me I have squeezed so S.O.B. will stand for 'Servants of Brotherhood.'
From Time Magazine Archive
Their inventiveness and stylishness keep the other characters from flying out of his orbit while keeping audiences riveted in their seats and even caring about the s.o.b.
From Time Magazine Archive
Relatives crouched on the floor to say their final goodbyes to loved ones, kissing the faces of the dead between sobs.
From Barron's ● Sep. 16, 2026
The sister of Maureen Brainard-Barnes broke down into sobs as she talked about how much she missed her.
From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2026
As my wife held Charlie Kirk’s widow on the first day of her terrible sorrow, Erika told Usha between sobs that she regretted having only two kids with Charlie.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
Whether he was laughing, brooding or crumpling into sobs to create one of the most well-known and widely circulated meme GIFs of all time, Van Der Beek’s expressive appeal propelled him to virtually overnight superstardom.
From Salon ● Feb. 15, 2026
Nhamo sank to the ground and burst into wild sobs.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
Rachel Reyes sobbed as she recounted the moments leading up to the death of her son, Martinez.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
When she realised she would be avoiding jail Blackwell sobbed in relief and agreed to the judge's demand that she pay at a rate of £400 a month.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026
Lindsay Clancy sobbed in court as a recording of her husband's 911 call played.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
When Cobolli sent a smash long on the second match point, Zverev instantly fell backwards onto the clay and sobbed into his hands.
From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2026
He turned on the light, stumbled to the far wall, slid down to the tile floor and sobbed.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
Canadian Blake Parnham recalled that moment: "I was sobbing watching the game at home because I felt so vindicated, that Buffalo is different."
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
"We had to do this to set his soul free, so that he is at peace and happy wherever he is," she said, flanked by her sobbing son.
From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026
This momentarily disarms Vytas and Marija, but afterward we see them sobbing quietly in separate rooms.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
“I’m actually only going to speak about what happened after I left that set of my own film adaptation, hyperventilating and sobbing, and there are many witnesses, so it’s not really a secret.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
It is the sound of a people in despair that I shall never forget: the weeping, the sobbing, the screaming and the praying.
From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
