SOB Synonyms: 52 Similar and Opposite Words

sob 1 of 2

verb

ˈsäb

Definition of sob

as in to cry

to shed tears often while making meaningless sounds as a sign of pain or distress the child sobbed when she found the dead frog

Synonyms & Similar Words

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sob

2 of 2

noun

as in tears

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of sob

Verb

Sitting in her wheelchair at the defense table, Clancy kept her head down and then began to sob while holding her defense lawyer’s hand. — Rebecca Cohen, NBC news, 24 Aug. 2026 Afterward, Sanchez sobbed and Corbalan turned to the Sanchez family. — Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 18 Aug. 2026

Noun

One juror burst into loud sobs after a detective displayed three plastic pots that had held Jimmy‘s remains. — Amy Driscoll, Miami Herald, 3 May 2026 Yet there’s surprisingly little scientific research on the matter, leaving the question of whether there are actually emotional benefits to a nice sob session. — Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 2 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for sob

Recent Examples of Synonyms for sob

Verb

In court, Lindsay appeared to cry during opening statements when a prosecutor described her three children and their manner of death.

— Selena Barrientos, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2026
When the Kirk family attorney spoke about how Charlie Kirk stood for the opposite of hate, Erika Kirk was crying and nodding along.

— Andi Babineau, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of cry

Noun

Scott’s face, in this shot, is a whole novel, disintegrating into tears before being shored up again, eventually rearranged into something resembling a welcoming smile that teeters on the edge of collapse.

— Alison Willmore, Vulture, 15 Sep. 2026
The strip measures how much the eye produces tears over about five minutes.

— Julie Scott, Verywell Health, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of tears

Verb

Many around the world looked in horror last month at images of a Ukrainian grandmother weeping as the body of her grandson was pulled from the rubble of his home following a Russian missile attack.

— Marc A. Thiessen, Washington Post, 3 Sep. 2026
Dil Maya Lama stood weeping outside the help desk at the hospital, searching for information about her missing 26-year-old brother, a driver for a hydropower company in Rasuwa.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 30 Aug. 2026

Definition of weep

Noun

When journalist Matthew Belloni broke the news of Paltrow’s upcoming dinner party last week in his Puck newsletter, a groan went up from some corners of the internet.

— Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 28 Aug. 2026
An underwhelming and nearly green-less teaser first dropped back in March to the enormous groans of Green Lantern faithful everywhere.

— Jeff Spry, Space.com, 16 Aug. 2026

Definition of groan

Browse Nearby Words

soars

sob

sobbed

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Style

“Sob.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sob. Accessed 17 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of sob

verb

noun

Example Sentences

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