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Webster 1913 Edition

Sober

Sober

,
Adj.
[
Com
par.
Soberer
;
sup
erl.
Soberest
.]
[OE.
sobre
, F.
sobre
, from L.
sobrius
, probably from a prefix
so-
expressing separation +
ebrius
drunken. Cf.
Ebriety
.]
1.
Temperate in the use of spirituous liquors; habitually temperate;
as, a
sober
man
.
That we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and
sober
life, to the glory of Thy holy name.
Bk. of Com. Prayer.
2.
Not intoxicated or excited by spirituous liquors;
as, the sot may at times be
sober
.
3.
Not mad or insane; not wild, visionary, or heated with passion; exercising cool, dispassionate reason; self-controlled; self-possessed.
There was not a
sober
person to be had; all was tempestuous and blustering.
Druden.
No
sober
man would put himself into danger for the applause of escaping without breaking his neck.
Dryden.
4.
Not proceeding from, or attended with, passion; calm;
as,
sober
judgment; a man in his
sober
senses.
5.
Serious or subdued in demeanor, habit, appearance, or color; solemn; grave; sedate.
What parts gay France from
sober
Spain?
Prior.
See her
sober
over a sampler, or gay over a jointed baby.
Pope.
Twilight gray
Had in her
sober
livery all things clad.
Milton.
Syn. – Grave; temperate; abstinent; abstemious; moderate; regular; steady; calm; quiet; cool; collected; dispassionate; unimpassioned; sedate; staid; serious; solemn; somber. See
Grave
.

So′ber

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Sobered
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Sobering
.]
To make sober.
There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain,
And drinking largely
sobers
us again.
Pope.

So′ber

,
Verb.
I.
To become sober; – often with down.
Vance gradually
sobered
down.
Ld. Lytton.

Webster 1828 Edition

Sober

SO'BER

,
Adj.
[L. sobrius.]
1.
Temperate in the use of spiritous liquors; habitually temperate; as a sober man. Live a sober, righteous and godly life.
2.
Not intoxicated or overpowered by spiritous liquors; not drunken. The sot may at times be sober.
3.
Not mad or insane; not wild, visionary or heated with passion; having the regular exercise of cool dispassionate reason. There was not a sober person to be had; all was tempestuous and blustering. Not sober man would put himself in danger, for the applause of escaping without breaking his neck.
4.
Regular; calm; not under the influence of passion; as sober judgment; a man in his sober senses.
5.
Serious; solemn; grave; as the sober livery of autumn. What parts gay France from sober Spain? See her sober over a sampler, or gay over a jointed baby.

SO'BER

,
Verb.
T.
TO make sober; to cure of intoxication. There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain and drinking largely sobers us again.

Definition 2024

sober

sober

See also: sõber

English

Adjective

sober ‎(comparative soberer, superlative soberest)

  1. not drunk; not intoxicated
  2. not given to excessive drinking of alcohol
    • Book of Common Prayer
      a godly, righteous, and sober life, to the glory of Thy holy name
  3. moderate; realistic; serious; not playful; not passionate; cool; self-controlled
    • Dryden
      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.
  4. dull; not bright or colorful
    • Milton
      Twilight grey / Had in her sober livery all things clad.
  5. subdued; solemn; grave
    • Prior
      What parts gay France from sober Spain?
    • Alexander Pope
      See her sober over a sampler, or gay over a jointed baby.

Synonyms

  • See also Wikisaurus:sober
  • See also Wikisaurus:serious
  • See also Wikisaurus:moderate

Antonyms

Related terms

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.
    • Alexander Pope
      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

Pronunciation

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 sober soberder het soberst
het soberste
indefinite m./f. sing. sobere soberdere soberste
n. sing. sober soberder soberste
plural sobere soberdere soberste
definite sobere soberdere soberste
partitive sobers soberders —

Synonyms

Antonyms

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)/
  • Rhymes: -əʊbə(r)

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