sober

sober

See also: Sober and sõber

English

Etymology

From Old French sobre, from Latin sōbrius, from se- (“without”) + ebrius (“intoxicated”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁egʷʰ- (“drink”). In the sense "not drunk," displaced native undrunken, from Old English undruncen.

Pronunciation

• enPR: sō'bə(r), IPA^(key): /ˈsəʊ.bə(ɹ)/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊbə(ɹ)
• Homophone: soba (in non-rhotic accents)

Adjective

sober (comparative soberer, superlative soberest)

1. Not drunk; not intoxicated.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:sober

   Antonyms: drunk; see also Thesaurus:drunk

2. Not under the influence of any recreational drug.
3. Not given to excessive drinking of alcohol.

   Synonym: abstemious

   • 1890, John Charles Cox, “The Sober Life”, in The Godly, Righteous, And Sober Life, page 35:

     Amid all the confusion and disorder that sin has introduced into the world, the Christian in union with God has a grace or Divine help that enables him to live the sober, self-restrained life.

   • 2020 December 29, Hilary Sheinbaum, “Finding Love Without Alcohol”, in The New York Times‎, ISSN 0362-4331:

     After eliminating alcohol from their lives, some sober individuals exclusively date nondrinkers.

4. Given to excessive drinking of alcohol, but having made a conscious decision to abstain from it.
   • (Can we date this quote?) (Please provide the book title or journal name)‎:

     Rose told me that she's sober.

5. (figurative) Moderate; realistic; serious; not playful; not passionate; cool; self-controlled.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:moderate, Thesaurus:serious

   • 1678, John Bunyan, The Pilgrim’s Progress from This World, to That which is to Come: […], London: […] Nath[aniel] Ponder […], OCLC 228725984; reprinted in The Pilgrim’s Progress (The Noel Douglas Replicas), London: Noel Douglas, […], 1928, OCLC 5190338, page 31:

     God help me to watch and to be sober.

   • 1681, John Dryden, “The Preface to Ovid’s Epistles”, in Ovid, Ovid’s Epistles, […], 2nd edition, London: […] Jacob Tonson […], OCLC 13711515, page 21:

     [N]o sober man would put himſelf into danger for the Applauſe of ſcaping without breaking his Neck.

   • 2005, Plato, Sophist. Translation by Lesley Brown. 230d.

     Which is the finest and soberest state possible.

6. (of color) Dull; not bright or colorful.

   Synonyms: muted, subdued

   • 1667, John Milton, “(please specify the book number)”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], […], OCLC 228722708; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, OCLC 230729554:

     Twilight grey / Had in her sober livery all things clad.

7. Subdued; solemn; grave.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:serious

   • 1717, Alexander Pope, Letter from Edward Blount, Esq.

     See her sober over a sampler, or gay over a jointed baby.

   • 1718, Mat[thew] Prior, “Alma: Or, The Progress of the Mind”, in Poems on Several Occasions, London: […] Jacob Tonson […], and John Barber […], OCLC 5634253:

     What parts gay France from sober Spain? A little rising rocky chain.

8. (Scotland) Poor; feeble.

Derived terms

• ensober
• sober as a judge
• soberer
• soberize
• soberly
• soberness
• sobersides
• sober up
• unsober
• wanton kittens make sober cats

 

Translations

not drunk

Arabic: صَاحٍ‎ (ar) (ṣāḥin) Armenian: սթափ (hy) (stʿapʿ) Azerbaijani: ayıq (az) Bashkir: айыҡ (ayıq), айныҡ (aynıq) Belarusian: цвяро́зы (be) (cvjarózy) Bulgarian: тре́звен (bg) (trézven) Catalan: sobri (ca) Chinese: Mandarin: 清醒 (zh) (qīngxǐng), 冷靜／冷静 (zh) (lěngjìng) Czech: střízlivý m, střízvý (dated) Danish: ædru (da) Dutch: nuchter (nl) Erzya: тетява (tetjava) Esperanto: sobra (eo) Finnish: selvä (fi); selvin päin French: sobre (fr) Georgian: ფხიზელი (pxizeli) German: nüchtern (de) Greek: νηφάλιος (el) m (nifálios) Ancient: νηφάλιος (nēphálios) Hebrew: פּכֵּחַ‎ (he) m (pikkéaḥ) Hungarian: józan (hu) Irish: neamh-mheisciúil Italian: sobrio (it) m Japanese: シラフ (shirafu) Karakhanid: اَذِغْ‎ (aδïɣ) Latin: sobrius Luxembourgish: eniichter Macedonian: трезен (trezen), трезвен (trezven) Norman: sobre m or f (Jersey) Norwegian: Bokmål: edru Nynorsk: edru Old Church Slavonic: Cyrillic: трѣзвъ (trězvŭ) Old East Slavic: терезвъ (terezvŭ), тверезъ (tverezŭ) Old English: undruncen Plautdietsch: nichta Polish: trzeźwy (pl) Portuguese: sóbrio (pt) Russian: тре́звый (ru) (trézvyj), тверёзый (ru) (tverjózyj) (regional or non-standard), терёзвый (terjózvyj) (obsolete, regional) Scottish Gaelic: sòbair, stuama Serbo-Croatian: Cyrillic: трезан, тријезан, трезвен Roman: trezan (sh), trijezan (sh), trezven (sh) Slovak: triezvy Slovene: trezen (sl) Sorbian: Lower Sorbian: nuchtarny Spanish: sobrio (es), sereno (es) Swedish: nykter (sv) Tatar: аек (tt) (ayek) Thai: ไม่เมา, สร่างเมา Turkish: ayık (tr) Ukrainian: твере́зий (tverézyj) Welsh: sobr (cy) Yiddish: ניכטער‎ (nikhter)

not given to excessive drinking of alcohol

Bulgarian: въздържан (bg) (vǎzdǎržan) Catalan: sobri (ca) Danish: ædruelig Dutch: nuchter (nl) Finnish: raitis (fi) French: sobre (fr) Greek: εγκρατής (el) m (egkratís) Hungarian: mértékletes (hu) Irish: neamh-mheisciúil Italian: sobrio (it) m Latin: abstēmius Norman: sobre m or f (Jersey) Portuguese: sóbrio (pt) Scottish Gaelic: sòbair, stuama Welsh: sobr (cy)

moderate

Bashkir: айыҡ (ayıq), айныҡ (aynıq) Bulgarian: умерен (bg) (umeren) Catalan: sobri (ca) Czech: střízlivý m Danish: sober (da) Finnish: hillitty (fi) French: sobre (fr) German: nüchtern (de), besonnen (de), ernst (de) Greek: νηφάλιος (el) m (nifálios), μετρημένος (el) m (metriménos) Hungarian: józan (hu), higgadt (hu), megfontolt (hu) Italian: sobrio (it) m Japanese: 真面目 (ja) (まじめ, majime) Norman: sobre m or f (Jersey) Old English: gedrēoh, sȳfre Portuguese: sóbrio (pt) Russian: уме́ренный (ru) (umérennyj) Scottish Gaelic: stuama Spanish: sobrio (es) Welsh: sobr (cy)

dull

Catalan: sobri (ca) Czech: tupý (cs) m, hloupý (cs) m Finnish: hillitty (fi) French: sobre (fr) German: gedeckt (de) (of colours) Hungarian: tompa (hu), fakó (hu), matt (hu) Norman: sobre m or f (Jersey) Portuguese: sóbrio (pt) Russian: нея́ркий (ru) (nejárkij), ту́склый (ru) (túsklyj) Spanish: apagado (es) Turkish: hüşyar, mutedil (tr), uyanık dikkatli Welsh: sobr (cy)

subdued; solemn; grave

Finnish: vakava (fi), vakavamielinen Hungarian: komoly (hu) Plautdietsch: ieeboa Spanish: sobrio (es) Welsh: sobr (cy)

See also

• teetotaller

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.
   • 1711, Alexander Pope, An Essay on Criticism:

     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.

3. To moderate one's feelings.

Translations

make or become sober

Bulgarian: изтрезнявам (bg) (iztreznjavam) Chinese: Mandarin: 醒酒 (zh) (xǐngjiǔ) Czech: vystřízlivět pf Esperanto: sobrigi Finnish: selvittää (fi) German: ernüchtern (de) Hungarian: kijózanít (hu) Japanese: 酔いを醒ます (yoi wo samasu) Swedish: nyktra (sv), nyktra till (sv)

overcome intoxication

Czech: vystřízlivět pf Esperanto: sobriĝi Finnish: selvitä (fi) French: cuver (fr) German: ausnüchtern (de) Hungarian: kijózanodik (hu) Swedish: nyktra (sv), nyktra till (sv)

Anagrams

• Beros, Boers, Bores, Boser, Brose, Serbo-, bores, brose, robes

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Danish

Etymology

From French sobre, from Latin sobrius.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -oːbər

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.

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Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch sober, from Old French sobre, from Latin sōbrius. Doublet of zuiver.

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -oːbər

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

• eenvoudig

Antonyms

• overdadig

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Swedish

Etymology

From French sobre.

Adjective

sober (comparative sobrare, superlative sobrast)

1. moderate
2. stylish, discreetly tasteful

Inflection

Inflection of sober
Indefinite	Positive	Comparative	Superlative2
Common singular	sober	sobrare	sobrast
Neuter singular	sobert	sobrare	sobrast
Plural	sobra	sobrare	sobrast
Masculine plural3	sobre	sobrare	sobrast
Definite	Positive	Comparative	Superlative
Masculine singular1	sobre	sobrare	sobraste
All	sobra	sobrare	sobraste
1) Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine. 2) The indefinite superlative forms are only used in the predicative. 3) Dated or archaic

References

• sober in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• sober in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• sober in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

Anagrams

• sobre