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Glite Dictionary
to cry in one's beer

to cry in one's beer

9.6
To feel sorry for yourself and complain to get sympathy
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : llorar en la cerveza
  • He always cries in his beer after a breakup, sharing his woes with anyone who will listen.

Examples

  • After losing her job, she sat alone at the bar, crying in her beer and lamenting her misfortune.

  • First, you take his job, and then you make him cry in his beer.

    Wrath of Man (2021)

  • And it isn't by crying in my beer either.

    Any Number Can Play (1949)

  • She is crying in her beer tonight.

    Blog text (27)

  • The bartender gently suggested he call her a cab when she was hunched over the counter, crying in her beer, like a character in a country song.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • Whenever things go wrong, he prefers to cry in his beer rather than confront his problems directly.

Synonyms

to wallow in
vsto cry in one's beer
28 7.4

To spend a lot of time feeling sorry for yourself and not trying to change

is more about showing sadness outwardly to gain sympathy than inward dwelling
to snivel
vsto cry in one's beer
11 7.4

To complain in a whining, tearful way

is expressing sadness in a self-indulgent way often seeking sympathy
to cry the blues
vsto cry in one's beer
  • Informal
1 7.5

To feel sad and complain to others

is more self-indulgent and seeks sympathy rather than simply feeling sad
to cry a river
vsto cry in one's beer
  • Informal
1 8.7

Complain a lot in a dramatic way about something that upsets you

is less about exaggeration and more about sincere self-pity seeking sympathy
to cry like a pissbaby
vsto cry in one's beer
  • Offensive
9.9

To cry in a very childish way when upset

is a more neutral self-pitying complaint aimed at gaining sympathy not insulting

Antonyms

to move on
670 3.1

To start the next stage or activity and stop focusing on the past

to count one's blessings
  • Informal
17 4.1

To be thankful for the good things in your life

How Self-Pitying

to wallow
42 5.8
to cry in one's beer
  • Informal
9.6
to mope
52 4.6
to complain
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

cry in one's beer infinitive
cried in one's beer past
cried in one's beer past participle
crying in one's beer present participle
cries in one's beer third person singular

Morphology

cry + in + one + beer

The verb 'cry' and the literal scene of crying into a drink are immediately understandable, so learners can infer a sense of sadness or private upset. However, the idiomatic nuance of self-pitying complaining or seeking sympathy (rather than literal sobbing into a beer) is culturally specific and not fully predictable from the parts, so full comprehension usually requires prior exposure.

Etymology

The idiom cry in one's beer comes from the image of someone literally crying into their beer at a bar, feeling sorry for themselves and asking for comfort. So, it now means 'to feel sorry for yourself and complain to get sympathy'.