Meaning & use
cry
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Meanings
verbintransitive
To let tears fall from your eyes, usually because you are sad, hurt or deeply moved.
Grammar: No object; often followed by about or over: she cried about the news.
Patterns
- cry about something
- cry over something
The baby cried all night.
He cried when he heard the happy news.
She tried not to cry at the farewell.
verbtransitive or intransitive
To shout or call out loudly.
Grammar: Can take a quote or a phrase: she cried for help.
Patterns
- cry for help
- cry out
"Stop!" he cried, running toward them.
A man cried for help from the water.
The seller cried his wares across the market.
nouncountable
A loud sound or call, made from fear, pain or excitement.
Grammar: Often a cry of something: a cry of joy.
Patterns
- a cry of something
A cry of pain came from the kitchen.
We heard a cry for help.
The crowd let out a cry of delight.
nounsingularinformal
A period of weeping.
Grammar: Often used with have: have a good cry.
Patterns
- have a cry
She had a good cry after the movie.
I needed a cry after that week.
He went to his room for a quiet cry.
Word forms
| third person singular | cries |
|---|---|
| past tense | cried |
| past participle | cried |
| -ing form | crying |
| plural | cries |
Common combinations
- cry for help
- Neighbors heard a cry for help.
- cry out
- He cried out in pain.
- cry over spilled milk
- There's no use crying over spilled milk.
- cry your eyes out
- She cried her eyes out at the airport.
- battle cry
- The team's battle cry rang across the field.
- cry with laughter
- They cried with laughter at the joke.
Synonyms and how they differ
- weep
- Weep is more literary and suggests quiet, sustained crying.
- sob
- Sob means crying with loud, shaky breaths, so it is stronger than cry.
- shout
- Shout means to speak loudly with no suggestion of tears.
- bawl
- Bawl means crying loudly and is often used about children.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: cry or scream?
cry vs scream
A scream is a high loud sound of fear or pain, while cry is more general and can mean tears.
Practice
Which option shows the correct past tense of cry?
Choose one answer.
Verbs ending in consonant plus y change y to ied in the past tense, so the form is cried.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “cry”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.