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soberness

 - 3 dictionary results

so⋅ber

  [soh-ber] adjective, -er, -est, verb
Use soberness in a Sentence
–adjective
1. not intoxicated or drunk.
2. habitually temperate, esp. in the use of liquor.
3. quiet or sedate in demeanor, as persons.
4. marked by seriousness, gravity, solemnity, etc., as of demeanor, speech, etc.: a sober occasion.
5. subdued in tone, as color; not gay or showy, as clothes.
6. free from excess, extravagance, or exaggeration: sober facts.
7. showing self-control: sober restraint.
8. sane or rational: a sober solution to the problem.
–verb (used with object), verb (used without object)
9. to make or become sober: (often fol. by up).
Origin:
1300–50; ME sobre < OF < L sōbrius

Related forms:
so⋅ber⋅ing⋅ly, adverb
so⋅ber⋅ly, adverb
so⋅ber⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
2. abstinent, abstemious. 4. serious, quiet, sedate, subdued, staid. See grave 2 . 5. somber, dull. 7. composed, collected. 8. reasonable, sound.

Antonyms:
4. gay.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To soberness
so·ber   (sō'bər)   
adj.   so·ber·er, so·ber·est

  1. Habitually abstemious in the use of alcoholic liquors or drugs; temperate.

  2. Not intoxicated or affected by the use of drugs.

  3. Plain or subdued: sober attire.

  4. Devoid of frivolity, excess, exaggeration, or speculative imagination; straightforward: gave a sober assessment of the situation.

  5. Marked by seriousness, gravity, or solemnity of conduct or character. See Synonyms at serious.

  6. Marked by circumspection and self-restraint.

tr. & intr.v.   so·bered, so·ber·ing, so·bers
To make or become sober.

[Middle English, from Old French sobre, from Latin sōbrius; see s(w)e- in Indo-European roots.]
so'ber·ly adv., so'ber·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

sober 
c.1300, "grave, serious, solemn," from O.Fr. sobre, from L. sobrius "not drunk, temperate," from se- "without" + ebrius "drunk," of unknown origin. Sense of "moderate, temperate," especially "abstaining from strong drink" is first attested 1338; meaning "not drunk at the moment" is from 1387. The verb meaning "to become sober" is attested from 1820 (usually with up). Sobersides "sedate, serious-minded person" is recorded from 1705.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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