sober
not intoxicated or drunk.
habitually temperate, especially in the use of liquor.
quiet or sedate in demeanor, as persons.
marked by seriousness, gravity, solemnity, etc., as of demeanor, speech, etc.: a sober occasion.
subdued in tone, as color; not colorful or showy, as clothes.
free from excess, extravagance, or exaggeration: sober facts.
showing self-control: sober restraint.
sane or rational: a sober solution to the problem.
to make or become sober: (often followed by up).
Origin of sober
1synonym study For sober
word story For sober
Ēbrius ultimately derives from the Proto-Indo-European root egwh- “to drink” (the consonant gwh regularly becomes b in Latin and ph in Greek). The Latin suffix -ri- added to egwh- yields the stem for the adjective ēbrius. In Greek, the root egwh- is prefixed by the negative particle ne-, becoming first nēgwh and then nēph-, the stem of the Greek verb nḗphein “to be sober.”
Other words for sober
Opposites for sober
Other words from sober
- so·ber·ly, adverb
- so·ber·ness, noun
- non·so·ber, adjective
- non·so·ber·ly, adverb
- non·so·ber·ness, noun
- qua·si-so·ber, adjective
- qua·si-so·ber·ly, adverb
- un·so·ber, adjective
- un·so·ber·ly, adverb
- un·so·ber·ness, noun
- un·so·bered, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
British Dictionary definitions for sober
/ (ˈsəʊbə) /
not drunk
not given to excessive indulgence in drink or any other activity
sedate and rational: a sober attitude to a problem
(of colours) plain and dull or subdued
free from exaggeration or speculation: he told us the sober truth
(usually foll by up) to make or become less intoxicated, reckless, etc
Origin of sober
1Derived forms of sober
- sobering, adjective
- soberingly, adverb
- soberly, adverb
- soberness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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