sob

¹ American  

[sob] / sɒb /

verb (used without object)

sobbed, sobbing

1. to weep with a convulsive catching of the breath.

2. to make a sound resembling this.

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verb (used with object)

sobbed, sobbing

1. to utter with sobs.

2. to put, send, etc., by sobbing or with sobs.

   to sob oneself to sleep.

noun

1. the act of sobbing; a convulsive catching of the breath in weeping.

2. any sound suggesting this.

S.O.B. ² American  

Or SOB

abbreviation

(sometimes lowercase)

1. son of a bitch.

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sob ¹ British  

/ sɒb /

verb

1. (intr) to weep with convulsive gasps

2. (tr) to utter with sobs

3. to cause (oneself) to be in a specified state by sobbing

   to sob oneself to sleep

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noun

1. a convulsive gasp made in weeping

s.o.b. ² British  

abbreviation

1. son of a bitch

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Other Word Forms

• sobber noun
• sobbing noun
• sobbingly adverb
• sobful adjective

Etymology

Origin of sob

1150–1200; Middle English sobben, apparently imitative

Example Sentences

How long I lay on my bed sobbing for the one love of my life I do not know.

From Literature

It is the sound of a people in despair that I shall never forget: the weeping, the sobbing, the screaming and the praying.

From Literature

Milton said he and his wife both began sobbing.

From The Wall Street Journal

It was the same songs as a real funeral, though without the usual sobbing after ‘The Old Rugged Cross’.

From Literature

"He did not want to leave the town. He stayed, but is now in the cemetery," she told AFP, sobbing in the church hall.

From Barron's

Related Words

• bawl
• break down
• howl
• wail
• weep
• whimper