weep
1 Americanverb (used without object)
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weeps,
present (3rd person singular)
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wept,
past participle, past
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weeping
present participle
verb (used with object)
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weeps,
present (3rd person singular)
-
wept,
past participle, past
-
weeping
present participle
-
to weep for (someone or something); mourn with tears or other expression of sorrow.
He wept his dead brother.
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to shed (tears); pour forth in weeping.
to weep tears of gratitude.
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to let fall or give forth in drops.
trees weeping an odorous gum.
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to pass, bring, put, etc., to or into a specified condition with the shedding of tears (usually followed by away, out, etc.).
to weep one's eyes out;
to weep oneself to sleep.
noun
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weeping, or a fit of weeping.
-
the exudation of water or liquid.
noun
verb
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to shed (tears) as an expression of grief or unhappiness
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to utter, shedding tears
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to mourn or lament (for something)
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to exude (drops of liquid)
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(intr) (of a wound, etc) to exude a watery or serous fluid
noun
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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weepsimple
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weepssimple
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have weptperfect
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has weptperfect
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am weepingprogressive
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are weepingprogressive
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is weepingprogressive
-
have been weepingperfect progressive
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has been weepingperfect progressive
Past
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weptsimple
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had weptperfect
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was weepingprogressive
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were weepingprogressive
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had been weepingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of weep1
First recorded before 900; Middle English wepen, Old English wēpan “to wail”; cognate with Gothic wōpjan “to call,” Old Norse æpa “to cry out”
Origin of weep2
Imitative
Explanation
When you weep, you cry. If you're very empathetic, you might start to weep whenever you see other people weep. To shed tears from sadness is to weep. Some people weep rarely, only when they've suffered a true loss or tragedy. Other sensitive souls weep at songs, movies, books, and even sweet stories or pictures. Weep comes from the Old English word wepan, "shed tears or mourn over," which has a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to cry or scream."
Vocabulary lists containing weep
Instead of "Said": Words For Sad Speech
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"Dragon, Dragon"
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The White Album
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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:
"We were forced to leave because of the Houthis," she told AFP, adding: "My children are still there -- they couldn't get out. I weep for them every day, waiting for them to escape."
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
As the gig continues, they dance and cheer and weep.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
Zendaya, “Euphoria” “ ‘Pluribus’ star Rhea Seehorn has the momentum, and with two major streaming series to her credit, ‘The Madison’s’ Michelle Pfeiffer may weep her way to a nomination.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026
All I wanted then was to sink into a pot of chicken-and-rice stew and weep.
From Salon ● Dec. 28, 2025
Asta and Ben tried to comfort Pantalaimon, but he wriggled free; he wanted to be with the little pale form that could only weep and weep.
From "The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage" by Philip Pullman
Daniela Lopez, 40, weeps as she speaks with the psychologist.
From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026
The Halos have gone to halo, the Big A is now the Big L and, somewhere, a rally monkey weeps.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 31, 2026
No college basketball fan weeps for the Blue Devils’ bad luck, but Duke knows better than most that a great regular season doesn’t guarantee a championship.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 15, 2026
Kywe Nyein, 71, weeps as he explains that his family are preparing to hold the funeral of his five-year-old granddaughter, Thet Hter San.
From BBC ● Mar. 31, 2025
She weeps for her children, Their smothered faces Of sleeping angels .
From "Neighborhood Odes" by Gary Soto
He renders the original’s panoply of suffering in accessible English, as in this view of Satan: “With six eyes / He wept, and three chins let the foul tears fall / And bloody foam.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
On Thursday, he wept as he described his frantic calls to missing devotees, in a video message posted from Tibet to his several million followers.
From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026
A man and woman held each other and wept – relatives of the dead man.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
When Morton heard that Nolan wanted to meet her for “The Odyssey,” she says she wept.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
She begged and wept, but the boat continued to pitch, with Nhamo clinging to the sides.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
"My mother shouted at us to get down," her son Ezz recalled, weeping as he spoke.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
What Howrey delivers with “Body Language” is a novel that covers all that ground while keeping the reader on the edge of their seat, alternately howling with laughter, holding their breath awaiting resolution, and weeping.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026
During Arbaeen, they show their grief, mourning with weeping and wailing in memory of Hussein.
From Barron's ● Aug. 1, 2026
The Buddha, seeing him bruised, bloody, and weeping, smiles and tells him he must bear it.
From Slate ● Jul. 10, 2026
Her voice caught, and she buried her weeping face in the delicate silk shoulder of Lady Constance’s white dress.
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
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.
