Link Centre Dictionary

sober

so·ber

UK/ˈsəʊ.bə(ɹ)/ US/ˈsoʊ.bɚ/ common
adjective (4) verb (3)

adjective

1.
2.

dignified and somber in manner or character and committed to keeping promises

  • “a grave God-fearing man”
  • “a quiet sedate nature”
  • “as sober as a judge”
  • “a solemn promise”
  • “the judge was solemn as he pronounced sentence”
Synonyms
Similar
3.

lacking brightness or color; dull

  • “drab faded curtains”
  • “sober Puritan gray”
  • “children in somber brown clothes”
Synonyms
Similar
4.

completely lacking in playfulness

Synonyms
Antonyms

verb

1.

cause to become sober

  • “A sobering thought”
2.

become more realistic

  • “After thinking about the potential consequences of his plan, he sobered up”
Synonyms
3.

become sober after excessive alcohol consumption

  • “Keep him in bed until he sobers up”
Synonyms

Origin

Inherited from Middle English sober, from Old French sobre, from Latin sōbrius, from se- (“without”) + ebrius (“intoxicated”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁egʷʰ- (“drink”). In the sense "not drunk," displaced native undrunken, from Old English undruncen.

Phrases

  • appeal from Philip drunk to Philip sober
  • California sober
  • cold sober
  • draw a sober breath
  • drunk words are sober thoughts
  • sober as a judge
  • sober down
  • sober house

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Entails

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.