as in cries
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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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sobs
Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 11 Feb. 2026
The series ends as Eddie goes into Jamie's bedroom, sobs into the comforter and holds his teddy bear.
—Jessica Sager, PEOPLE, 11 Jan. 2026
Her mom, Andrea Swift, can be seen handing her a tissue as Swift hangs her head and sobs.
—Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Dec. 2025
Or when one of their sons, after rifling through Dad’s joke folder, quietly sobs at what he’s found.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2025
Advertisement One veteran, Matty Roberts visibly sobs.
—Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 3 Nov. 2025
Darcey sobs as Georgi continues to defend himself for not easily opening up to others.
—Abigail Adams, People.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Dever threw the compliment right back at Pascal and Ramsey, for the scene when Ramsey’s Ellie sobs over Joel’s lifeless body.
—Kirsten Chuba, HollywoodReporter, 17 Aug. 2025
Verb
There are a few inarticulate screams and sobs but no dialogue, no lyrics, no spoken intro, no utterances at all.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 11 Feb. 2026
The series ends as Eddie goes into Jamie's bedroom, sobs into the comforter and holds his teddy bear.
—Jessica Sager, PEOPLE, 11 Jan. 2026
Her mom, Andrea Swift, can be seen handing her a tissue as Swift hangs her head and sobs.
—Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Dec. 2025
Or when one of their sons, after rifling through Dad’s joke folder, quietly sobs at what he’s found.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2025
Advertisement One veteran, Matty Roberts visibly sobs.
—Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 3 Nov. 2025
Darcey sobs as Georgi continues to defend himself for not easily opening up to others.
—Abigail Adams, People.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Dever threw the compliment right back at Pascal and Ramsey, for the scene when Ramsey’s Ellie sobs over Joel’s lifeless body.
—Kirsten Chuba, HollywoodReporter, 17 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sobs
Verb
-
Though both of them tear up, neither of them openly cries.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Néfissa cries loudly and with anguish about her son, but refuses to acknowledge his truth.—
Murtada Elfadl,
Variety,
13 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Tokenizing someone is always an ugly thing — yet Rubio deserves no tears.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
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And so, there [were] some tears.—
Christina Dugan Ramirez,
FOXNews.com,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Swiss skier Melanie Meillard weeps in the arms of her teammate Janine Schmitt after missing a turn on her slalom run Women’s Team Combined Slalom.—
Staff Photographer,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Feb. 2026
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Cannon weeps into an expansive white space that only she and Trish inhabit.—
E. Tammy Kim,
New Yorker,
17 Dec. 2025
Noun
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Back at the gathering, there were Martha’s groans and Gretchen’s anger, and there was Mike, clasping his chest—a heart attack?—
Yiyun Li,
New Yorker,
1 Mar. 2026
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Scanlon said inclusion of the searches in Bondi’s binder was also indicative of her intentions, with the attorney general repeatedly referencing the guide to push back on members, sparking groans from several.—
Rebecca Beitsch,
The Hill,
12 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sobs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sobs. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.
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