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Glite Dictionary
😭 Shedding tears 😠 Very bad
crying

crying

38 1.0
Tears and sounds you make when you feel sad or hurt
  • noun
  • /ˈkraɪɪŋ/
translation icon : llanto
  • The mother's crying during the emotional scene in the movie made everyone in the theater feel her pain.
  • the baby's crying
  • crying and whimpering
  • crying and screaming

Examples

  • Crying is the most easily recognizable symptom of pain, the most conspicuous external marker of sadness.

    Academic text (2017)

  • Crying gives way to sniffles, and Lesha tries to regain her composure.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • After this week of crying and stress, I am.

  • Her most recent book, with Barry Lester, Ph.D., is Why Is My Baby Crying?

    Academic text (2005)

  • After a long day, the child's crying was a clear sign that he was tired.

  • Crying can be a natural response to grief or overwhelming emotions.

Synonyms

cry
vscrying
260 1.0

A time when someone has tears because they feel sad or upset

covers the same emotional episode but stresses audible distress
sobbing
vscrying
69 1.0

Short gasping sounds someone makes while crying loudly

is a broader act of shedding eye liquid with distress sounds
in tears
vscrying
64 2.0

Crying because you feel very sad or touched

denotes the active leaking with sounds that show distress
wail
vscrying
54 3.2

A long loud cry that shows pain or deep sadness

is the tearful action in general without requiring long loud sounds
howling
vscrying
47 4.1

A long loud cry that shows strong feeling

is specifically about shedding eye liquid with distress or pain sounds
weeping
vscrying
31 1.4

A time when someone cries with tears and sobs

is the general act of shedding eye liquid with distress sounds
tears
vscrying
10 1.0

Drops of water that come from your eyes when you feel sad or happy

is the active event that usually includes distress sounds
wailing
vscrying
5 3.5

Loud long cries made when someone feels deep pain or sadness

is the broader act of shedding eye liquid that may include such cries
bawling
vscrying
4 3.5

Loud, noisy crying when someone is very upset

is the same emotional action but without extreme loudness
tearing
vscrying
1 1.4

The flow of tears from the eyes because of feeling or eye irritation

adds the idea of audible suffering or painful sounds alongside the flow
tearfulness
vscrying
4.3

A feeling of having many tears and wanting to cry because of sadness

describes the active shedding plus sounds of distress or pain
lacrimation
vscrying
  • Specialized
8.6

Tears that come from the eyes because of feelings or eye irritation

is the everyday emotional act often with audible distress
effusion of tears
vscrying
7.7

Tears that suddenly flow because of a strong feeling

is the general act that may but does not require large quantity

Antonyms

laughter
641 1.0

The sound people make when they find something funny

smiling
2 1.0

Having a smile that shows happiness or friendliness

Idioms

for crying out loud
  • Informal
31 8.2

You say this when you feel very annoyed or impatient

crying shame
  • Informal
6 4.6

A very sad situation that makes people feel sorry

crying all the way to the bank
9.2

Making a lot of money while pretending to be unhappy

How Intense

wailing
5 3.5
sobbing
69 1.0
crying
38 1.0

Surface Forms

crying singular
cryings plural

Morphology

crying = cry (transparent) = cry + ing

A regular gerund/nominalization formed from the verb 'cry' with the productive suffix '-ing', so the meaning 'the act of shedding tears' is directly derived.

Etymology

Crying comes from an old French word crier meaning 'to shout' or 'call out'. That loud-call idea moved to the sounds people make when they are hurt or sad, so crying now means 'shedding tears' often with loud sounds of pain or upset.