weep

So terrible, distressing, or grievous as to shake the foundations of one's faith or hope. The tragedy of those two young boys' deaths is enough to make the angels weep.

To weep copiously; to cry intensely and for a long time. Lauren wept her heart out at the news of her father's sudden death. What did you say to upset your brother? He's been weeping his heart out upstairs for the last half hour!

Said hyperbolically of one who is deemed so cold and indifferent as to be unable to cry tears. I've never seen Claire show any emotion—in fact, she probably weeps millstones. Why didn't you comfort that poor little girl? Do you weep millstones?

Prov. When you are happy, people will want to be around you and share your happiness, but when you are sad, people will avoid you. Nancy: When Harry and I were dating, all our friends invited us places and called to say hello. Now that we've broken up, they treat me as if I don't exist. Jane: Laugh and the world laughs with you; weep and you weep alone.

Fig. read the bad news; hear the bad news. I'm sorry to bring you the bad news. Read it and weep.

Fig. to shed false tears; to pretend that one is weeping. The child wasn't really hurt, but she shed crocodile tears anyway. He thought he could get his way if he cried crocodile tears.

to cry about someone or something; to mourn someone or something. She was weeping about her grandfather, who had passed away in the night. There is no use weeping about spilled milk.

Fig. to cry out of happiness. She was so happy, she wept for joy. We all wept for joy at the safe return of the child.

to cry out of sorrow for someone or an animal. She wept for her puppy when it was terribly sick. Please don't weep for me after I'm gone.

to cry about someone or something. No need to weep over me. I'll do all right. There is no point in weeping over something you can't do anything about.

to show sadness that is not sincere Political leaders shed crocodile tears while allowing the war to continue.

Keep your sense of humor and people will sympathize with you, as in She's always cheerful and has dozens of friends; laugh and the world laughs with you. This expression actually is part of an ancient Latin saying that concludes, weep and the world weeps with you. The current version, with the ending weep and you weep alone (meaning "you'll get no sympathy in your sorrow"), first appeared in 1883 in Ella Wilcox's poem "Solitude." O. Henry used a slightly different version: "Laugh, and the world laughs with you; weep, and they give you the laugh" ( The Count and the Wedding Guest, 1907).

Cry copiously, as in That sad tale of unrequited love always made her weep buckets. [Colloquial]

You won't be happy with this news. You're playing poker, and at the end of a hand you hold a full house, aces high. Only you and another player are left in the round. You lay down your hand, and just as you're about to reach for the substantial amount of money in the pot, the other player lays down his cards and says smugly, “Read 'em and weep.” It's a straight flush. Although the phrase is most commonly heard in card games, it has been used in other situations, such as when a garage mechanic with a distorted sense of humor hands you a staggeringly large bill for his services.