cry /ˈkraɪ/
Cry v. i. [imp. & p. p. Cried p. pr. & vb. n. Crying.]
1. To make a loud call or cry; to call or exclaim vehemently or earnestly; to shout; to vociferate; to proclaim; to pray; to implore.
And about the ninth hour, Jesus cried with a loud voice. -- Matt. xxvii. 46.
Clapping their hands, and crying with loud voice. --Shak.
Hear the voice of my supplications when I cry unto thee. -- Ps. xxviii. 2.
The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord. --Is. xl. 3.
Some cried after him to return. --Bunyan.
2. To utter lamentations; to lament audibly; to express pain, grief, or distress, by weeping and sobbing; to shed tears; to bawl, as a child.
Ye shall cry for sorrow of heart. --Is. lxv. 14.
I could find it in my heart to disgrace my man's apparel and to cry like a woman. --Shak.
3. To utter inarticulate sounds, as animals.
The young ravens which cry. --Ps. cxlvii. 9.
In a cowslip's bell I lie
There I couch when owls do cry. --Shak.
To cry on or To cry upon, to call upon the name of; to beseech. “No longer on Saint Denis will we cry.” --Shak.
To cry out. (a) To exclaim; to vociferate; to scream; to clamor. (b) To complain loudly; to lament.
To cry out against, to complain loudly of; to censure; to blame.
To cry out on or To cry out upon, to denounce; to censure. “Cries out upon abuses.” --Shak.
To cry to, to call on in prayer; to implore.
To cry you mercy, to beg your pardon. “I cry you mercy, madam; was it you?” --Shak.
Cry, v. t.
1. To utter loudly; to call out; to shout; to sound abroad; to declare publicly.
All, all, cry shame against ye, yet I 'll speak. --Shak.
The man . . . ran on,crying, Life! life! Eternal life! --Bunyan.
2. To cause to do something, or bring to some state, by crying or weeping; as, to cry one's self to sleep.
3. To make oral and public proclamation of; to declare publicly; to notify or advertise by outcry, especially things lost or found, goods to be sold, ets.; as, to cry goods, etc.
Love is lost, and thus she cries him. --Crashaw.
4. Hence, to publish the banns of, as for marriage.
I should not be surprised if they were cried in church next Sabbath. --Judd.
To cry aim. See under Aim.
To cry down, to decry; to depreciate; to dispraise; to condemn.
Men of dissolute lives cry down religion, because they would not be under the restraints of it. --Tillotson.
To cry out, to proclaim; to shout. “Your gesture cries it out.” --Shak.
To cry quits, to propose, or declare, the abandonment of a contest.
To cry up, to enhance the value or reputation of by public and noisy praise; to extol; to laud publicly or urgently.
Cry n.; pl. Cries
1. A loud utterance; especially, the inarticulate sound produced by one of the lower animals; as, the cry of hounds; the cry of wolves.
2. Outcry; clamor; tumult; popular demand.
Again that cry was found to have been as unreasonable as ever. --Macaulay.
3. Any expression of grief, distress, etc., accompanied with tears or sobs; a loud sound, uttered in lamentation.
There shall be a great cry throughout all the land. --Ex. xi. 6.
An infant crying in the night,
An infant crying for the light;
And with no language but a cry. --Tennyson.
4. Loud expression of triumph or wonder or of popular acclamation or favor.
The cry went once on thee. --Shak.
5. Importunate supplication.
O, the most piteous cry of the poor souls. --Shak.
6. Public advertisement by outcry; proclamation, as by hawkers of their wares.
The street cries of London. --Mayhew.
7. Common report; fame.
The cry goes that you shall marry her. --Shak.
8. A word or phrase caught up by a party or faction and repeated for effect; as, the party cry of the Tories.
All now depends upon a good cry. --Beaconsfield.
9. A pack of hounds.
A cry more tunable
Was never hollaed to, nor cheered with horn. --Shak.
10. A pack or company of persons; -- in contempt.
Would not this . . . get me a fellowship in a cry of players? --Shak.
11. The crackling noise made by block tin when it is bent back and forth.
A far cry, a long distance; -- in allusion to the sending of criers or messengers through the territory of a Scottish clan with an announcement or summons.
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cry
n 1: a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition; "the
speaker was interrupted by loud cries from the rear of
the audience" [syn: outcry, call, yell, shout, vociferation]
2: a loud utterance of emotion (especially when inarticulate);
"a cry of rage"; "a yell of pain" [syn: yell]
3: a slogan used to rally support for a cause; "a cry to arms";
"our watchword will be `democracy'" [syn: war cry, rallying
cry, battle cry, watchword]
4: a fit of weeping; "had a good cry"
5: the characteristic utterance of an animal; "animal cries
filled the night"
v 1: utter a sudden loud cry; "she cried with pain when the
doctor inserted the needle"; "I yelled to her from the
window but she couldn't hear me" [syn: shout, shout
out, call, yell, scream, holler, hollo, squall]
2: shed tears because of sadness, rage, or pain; "She cried
bitterly when she heard the news of his death"; "The girl
in the wheelchair wept with frustration when she could not
get up the stairs" [syn: weep] [ant: laugh]
3: utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy; "`I won!'
he exclaimed"; "`Help!' she cried"; "`I'm here,' the
mother shouted when she saw her child looking lost" [syn:
exclaim, cry out, outcry, call out, shout]
4: proclaim or announce in public; "before we had newspapers, a
town cryer would cry the news"; "He cried his merchandise
in the market square" [syn: blazon out]
5: demand immediate action; "This situation is crying for
attention"
6: utter a characteristic sound; "The cat was crying"
7: bring into a particular state by crying; "The little boy
cried himself to sleep"
[also: cried, cryings (pl), crying (pl)]