sob sister
1
9.9
- noun
- /sɑb ˈsɪstər/
- Archaic
:
periodista sentimental
- As a sob sister, she was known for her heart-wrenching articles that brought attention to social issues.
Examples
-
Many are do-good sob sisters with good hearts who, unaware of scientifically provable differences between humans throughout the world, nevertheless advocate foolish policies.
Blog text (4) -
Don't give me the sob-sister routine.
Fiction book (1994) -
Aw, fuck it... a little late for that sob sister stuff...
Fiction book (1994) -
Don't give me that sob-sister stuff!
Fiction book (1994) -
I hope you're not turning into one of them sob sisters wants to get caught.
-
Aw, don't go sob-sister on me, Stumpy.
Fiction book (1994) -
But no, these sob sisters and hand wringers worry about whether anyone smiled at this poor disaffected man.
Blog text (28) -
Somebody rounded up some Little Leaguers, probably so the press photographers would have some sob sister photos—the sort Cobb hated—except the press didn't bother coming.
Fiction book (1994) -
The sob sister captivated readers with her moving stories about struggling families.
-
Her role as a sob sister allowed her to highlight the hardships faced by the elderly in her community.
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
Knowing 'sob' (to cry) and 'sister' (a woman), a B1 learner can infer an emotional or tearful woman, so part of the meaning (sentimentality) is recoverable from the constituents. However the precise occupational sense—specifically a journalist who writes sentimental pieces—is an idiomatic, culturally specific extension that is not predictable from the words alone, making the expression only partially transparent.
Etymology
Sob sister comes from early newspapers. One popular story says women reporters wrote very emotional pieces that made readers sob, so the writers were called sisters and the name sob sister stuck — that's why it means 'a journalist who writes sentimental stories'.