sober

[soh-ber]

adjective

soberer, soberest 

1. not intoxicated or drunk.

2. habitually temperate, especially in the use of liquor.

   Synonyms: abstemious, abstinent

3. quiet or sedate in demeanor, as persons.

4. marked by seriousness, gravity, solemnity, etc., as of demeanor, speech, etc..

   a sober occasion.

   Synonyms: staid, subdued, sedate, quiet, serious
   Antonyms: gay

5. subdued in tone, as color; not colorful or showy, as clothes.

   Synonyms: dull, somber

6. free from excess, extravagance, or exaggeration.

   sober facts.

7. showing self-control.

   sober restraint.

   Synonyms: collected, composed

8. sane or rational.

   a sober solution to the problem.

   Synonyms: sound, reasonable

verb (used with or without object)

1. to make or become sober: (often followed byup ).

sober

/ ˈsəʊbə /

adjective

1. not drunk

2. not given to excessive indulgence in drink or any other activity

3. sedate and rational

   a sober attitude to a problem

4. (of colours) plain and dull or subdued

5. free from exaggeration or speculation

   he told us the sober truth

verb

1. (usually foll by up) to make or become less intoxicated, reckless, etc

Other Word Forms

• soberly adverb
• soberness noun
• nonsober adjective
• nonsoberly adverb
• nonsoberness noun
• quasi-sober adjective
• quasi-soberly adverb
• unsober adjective
• unsoberly adverb
• unsoberness noun
• unsobered adjective
• sobering adjective
• soberingly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of sober¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English sobre, from Old French, from Latin sōbrius

Word History and Origins

Origin of sober¹

C14 sobre, from Old French, from Latin sōbrius

Synonym Study

See grave ².

Example Sentences

Mr. Patten, as implied, is sober to the point of temperance.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The phrasing suggested he no longer does that, and could even imply he’s now sober, but the hosts just moved on after he said that.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

At first, the transition was difficult to manage, Farrell said: “After 15 or 20 years of carousing the way I caroused and drinking the way I drank, the sober world is a pretty scary world.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The good hands of Allstate and Prudential’s rock were sober affairs.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

He told them he was frustrated and now he had sobered up, he had no intention of taking his own life or hurting people.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• dark 
• disciplined 
• dispassionate 
• down-to-earth 
• earnest 
• levelheaded 
• low-key 
• lucid 
• no-nonsense 
• practical 
• quiet 
• rational 
• realistic 
• reasonable 
• restrained 
• sedate 
• serene 
• serious 
• solemn 
• somber