cry
Plural: cries
Noun
- a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition
- a loud utterance of emotion (especially when inarticulate)
- "a cry of rage"
- a slogan used to rally support for a cause
- "a cry to arms"
- a fit of weeping
- "had a good cry"
- the characteristic utterance of an animal
- A shedding of tears; the act of crying.
- A shout or scream.
- Words shouted or screamed.
- A clamour or outcry.
- A group of hounds.
- A pack or company of people.
- A typical sound made by the species in question.
- A desperate or urgent request.
- Common report; gossip.
Verb
Verb Forms: cried, crying, cries
- To shed tears, often as an expression of emotion.
- utter a sudden loud cry
- shed tears because of sadness, rage, or pain
- utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
- proclaim or announce in public
- "before we had newspapers, a town crier would cry the news"
- demand immediate action
- "This situation is crying for attention"
- utter a characteristic sound
- "The cat was crying"
- bring into a particular state by crying
- To shed tears; to weep. Especially in anger or sadness
- To utter loudly; to call out; to declare publicly.
- To shout, scream, yell.
- To forcefully attract attention or proclaim one’s presence.
- To utter inarticulate sounds, as animals do.
- To cause to do something, or bring to some state, by crying or weeping.
- To make oral and public proclamation of; to notify or advertise by outcry, especially things lost or found, goods to be sold, auctioned, etc.
- To make oral and public proclamation of; to notify or advertise by outcry, especially things lost or found, goods to be sold, auctioned, etc.
- Hence, to publish the banns of, as for marriage.
Examples
- "Woof" is the cry of a dog, while "neigh" is the cry of a horse.
- After we broke up, I retreated to my room for a good cry.
- Don’t CRY over a missed bingo; there’s always next turn to find a high-scoring word.
- I heard a cry from afar.
- That sad movie always makes me cry.
- to cry goods
- Tonight I’ll cry myself to sleep.
Origin / Etymology
The verb is from Middle English crien (13th century), from Old French crier, from Vulgar Latin *crītāre, generally thought to derive from Classical Latin quirītāre (Proto-West Germanic *krītan has also been suggested as a source). The noun corresponds to Middle English cry, crie, from Old French cri, a deverbal of crier.
etymology note
Middle English crien eventually displaced native Middle English galen (“to cry out”) (from Old English galan), Middle English greden (“to cry out”) (from Old English grǣdan), Middle English yermen (“to bellow, mourn, lament”) (from Old English ġierman), Middle English hooen, hoen (“to cry out”) (from Old Norse hóa), Middle English remen (“to cry, shout”) (from Old English hrīeman, compare Old English hrēam (“noise, outcry, lamentation, alarm”)), Middle English greten, graten (“to weep, cry, lament”) (from Old English grǣtan and Old Norse gráta). More at greet, regret.
Already in the 13th century, the meaning was extended to include the sense "to shed tears" (natively weep); cry used in this sense had mostly replaced weep by the 16th century.
Synonyms
battle cry, blazon out, call, call out, cry out, exclaim, holler, hollo, outcry, rallying cry, scream, shout, shout out, squall, vociferation, war cry, watchword, weep, yell, bawl, blubber, sob, wail, whimper
Antonyms
Scrabble Score: 8
cry: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Wordcry: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
cry: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary