sober

See also: Sober and sõber

English

Etymology

From Old French sobre, from Latin sōbrius, from se- (“without”) + ebrius (“intoxicated”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁egʷʰ- (“drink”).

Pronunciation
  • enPR: sō'bə(r), IPA(key): /ˈsəʊ.bə(ɹ)/
  • Audio (US)(file)
  • Rhymes: -əʊbə(r)
  • Homophone: soba (in non-rhotic accents)

Adjective

sober (comparative soberer, superlative soberest)

  1. not drunk; not intoxicated
  2. not given to excessive drinking of alcohol
    • 1890, John Charles, The Godly, Righteous, And Sober Life
  3. moderate; realistic; serious; not playful; not passionate; cool; self-controlled
    • 1680, John Dryden, Ovid's Epistles
      No sober man would put himself into danger for the applause of escaping without breaking his neck.
    • 2005, Plato, Sophist. Translation by Lesley Brown. 230d.
      Which is the finest and soberest state possible.
    • 1678, Bunyan, The Pilgrim's Progress, Second period
      God help me to watch and to be sober.
  4. dull; not bright or colorful
    • 1667, John Milton, Paradise Lost
      Twilight grey / Had in her sober livery all things clad.
  5. subdued; solemn; grave
    • c. 1716, Matthew Prior, Alma
      What parts gay France from sober Spain? A little rising rocky chain.
    • 1717, Alexander Pope, Letter from Edward Blount, Esq.
      See her sober over a sampler, or gay over a jointed baby.
  6. (Scotland) poor; feeble

Synonyms

Antonyms

Derived terms
▼ <a href='/wiki/Category:English_terms_derived_from_the_PIE_root_*h%E2%82%81eg%CA%B7%CA%B0-' title='Category:English terms derived from the PIE root *h₁egʷʰ-'>English terms derived from the PIE root *h₁egʷʰ-</a>‎ (0 c, 19 e)
  <a href='/wiki/ebrious' title='ebrious'>ebrious</a>
  <a href='/wiki/ensober' title='ensober'>ensober</a>
  <a href='/wiki/inebriacy' title='inebriacy'>inebriacy</a>
  <a href='/wiki/inebriant' title='inebriant'>inebriant</a>
  <a href='/wiki/inebriate' title='inebriate'>inebriate</a>
  <a href='/wiki/inebriated' title='inebriated'>inebriated</a>
  <a href='/wiki/inebriation' title='inebriation'>inebriation</a>
  <a href='/wiki/inebriety' title='inebriety'>inebriety</a>
  <a href='/wiki/inebrious' title='inebrious'>inebrious</a>
  <a href='/wiki/insobriety' title='insobriety'>insobriety</a>
  <a href='/wiki/sober' title='sober'>sober</a>
  <a href='/wiki/soberer' title='soberer'>soberer</a>
  <a href='/wiki/soberize' title='soberize'>soberize</a>
  <a href='/wiki/soberly' title='soberly'>soberly</a>
  <a href='/wiki/soberness' title='soberness'>soberness</a>
  <a href='/wiki/sobersides' title='sobersides'>sobersides</a>
  <a href='/wiki/sobriety' title='sobriety'>sobriety</a>
  <a href='/wiki/unebriate' title='unebriate'>unebriate</a>
  <a href='/wiki/unsober' title='unsober'>unsober</a>

Translations

See also

Verb

sober (third-person singular simple present sobers, present participle sobering, simple past and past participle sobered)

  1. (often with up) To make or become sober.
    • 1711, Alexander Pope, An Essay on Criticism
      There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain, / And drinking largely sobers us again.
  2. (often with up) To overcome or lose a state of intoxication.
    It took him hours to sober up.

Translations

Anagrams

Danish

Etymology

From French sobre, from Latin sobrius.

Adjective

sober

  1. sober (in character; moderate; realistic; serious)

Inflection
Inflection of sober
Positive Comparative Superlative
Common singular sober sobrere sobrest2
Neuter singular sobert sobrere sobrest2
Plural sobre sobrere sobrest2
Definite attributive1 sobre sobrere sobreste
1) When an adjective is applied predicatively to something definite, the corresponding "indefinite" form is used.
2) The "indefinite" superlatives may not be used attributively.

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch sober, from Old French sobre, from Latin sōbrius. Doublet of zuiver.

Pronunciation
  • Audio(file)
  • Rhymes: -oːbər

Adjective

sober (comparative soberder, superlative soberst)

  1. simple, plain, austere

Inflection
Inflection of sober
uninflected sober
inflected sobere
comparative soberder
positive comparative superlative
predicative/adverbial sobersoberderhet soberst
het soberste
indefinite m./f. sing. soberesoberderesoberste
n. sing. sobersoberdersoberste
plural soberesoberderesoberste
definite soberesoberderesoberste
partitive soberssoberders—

Synonyms

Antonyms
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