See cry someone a river in All languages combined, or Wiktionary
Download JSON data for cry someone a river meaning in English (5.3kB)
{
"etymology_text": "Probably from the song Cry Me a River (1953).",
"forms": [
{
"form": "cries someone a river",
"tags": [
"present",
"singular",
"third-person"
]
},
{
"form": "crying someone a river",
"tags": [
"participle",
"present"
]
},
{
"form": "cried someone a river",
"tags": [
"participle",
"past"
]
},
{
"form": "cried someone a river",
"tags": [
"past"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "*"
},
"expansion": "cry someone a river (third-person singular simple present cries someone a river, present participle crying someone a river, simple past and past participle cried someone a river)",
"name": "en-verb"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "verb",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
{
"_dis": "83 17",
"kind": "other",
"name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
"parents": [
"Entries with incorrect language header",
"Entry maintenance"
],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "85 15",
"kind": "other",
"name": "English quotations with omitted translation",
"parents": [
"Quotations with omitted translation",
"Entry maintenance"
],
"source": "w+disamb"
}
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "2008 March 4, Michele Hanson, “I cry over anything lately”, in The Guardian",
"text": "It is rather shaming to be quite so wet over nothing in particular, but at least Fielding does it too. He cries gallons over slow-motion bits at the ends of films, especially Gladiator, and begins to worship Roman values, then Italian footballers kissing in slo-mo to the strains of Nessun Dorma. Sniffle, sniffle. And QPR being relegated in 1996. He can cry you a river over that one, and over a darling little clump of daffodils growing by the traffic island.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person."
],
"id": "en-cry_someone_a_river-en-verb-zh-508Lf",
"links": [
[
"sarcastic",
"sarcastic"
],
[
"weep",
"weep"
],
[
"profuse",
"profuse"
],
[
"excessive",
"excessive"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic, often sarcastic) To weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person."
],
"related": [
{
"_dis1": "89 11",
"word": "build a bridge and get over it"
},
{
"_dis1": "89 11",
"word": "crocodile tears"
},
{
"_dis1": "89 11",
"word": "crying game"
}
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic",
"often",
"sarcastic"
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "82 18",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"word": "pillittää"
},
{
"_dis1": "82 18",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"tags": [
"interjection"
],
"word": "voi kyynel"
},
{
"_dis1": "82 18",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"word": "jemandem ordentlich was vorheulen"
},
{
"_dis1": "82 18",
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"word": "piagnucolare"
},
{
"_dis1": "82 18",
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"tags": [
"perfective"
],
"word": "popłakać się"
},
{
"_dis1": "82 18",
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "пла́каться в жиле́тку (plákatʹsja v žilétku, literally “cry into a waistcoat”)",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person"
},
{
"_dis1": "82 18",
"code": "wa",
"lang": "Walloon",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"word": "tchoûler come ene Madlinne"
}
]
},
{
"categories": [],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1968 October 3, A. B. Geraci, “Letter to Editor: PAT Should End Its Free Passes”, in Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, retrieved 2008-10-20, page 16",
"text": "Port Authority Transit should cry me a river. Before raising fares it should cut an unnecessary expense.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling."
],
"id": "en-cry_someone_a_river-en-verb-BapSJOjU",
"links": [
[
"sarcastic",
"sarcastic"
],
[
"sympathy",
"sympathy"
],
[
"complain",
"complain"
],
[
"snivel",
"snivel"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic, usually sarcastic, by extension) To try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling."
],
"tags": [
"broadly",
"idiomatic",
"sarcastic",
"usually"
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "17 83",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "to try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling",
"word": "kitistä"
},
{
"_dis1": "17 83",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "to try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling",
"word": "auf die Tränendrüse drücken"
},
{
"_dis1": "17 83",
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "to try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling",
"tags": [
"perfective"
],
"word": "nie popłacz się"
},
{
"_dis1": "17 83",
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "to try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling",
"word": "qué pena me das"
}
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"audio": "en-au-cry someone a river.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/2/29/En-au-cry_someone_a_river.ogg/En-au-cry_someone_a_river.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/29/En-au-cry_someone_a_river.ogg",
"tags": [
"Australia"
],
"text": "Audio (AU)"
}
],
"wikipedia": [
"Cry Me a River (Arthur Hamilton song)"
],
"word": "cry someone a river"
}
{
"categories": [
"English entries with incorrect language header",
"English lemmas",
"English multiword terms",
"English quotations with omitted translation",
"English terms with audio links",
"English terms with quotations",
"English verbs"
],
"etymology_text": "Probably from the song Cry Me a River (1953).",
"forms": [
{
"form": "cries someone a river",
"tags": [
"present",
"singular",
"third-person"
]
},
{
"form": "crying someone a river",
"tags": [
"participle",
"present"
]
},
{
"form": "cried someone a river",
"tags": [
"participle",
"past"
]
},
{
"form": "cried someone a river",
"tags": [
"past"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "*"
},
"expansion": "cry someone a river (third-person singular simple present cries someone a river, present participle crying someone a river, simple past and past participle cried someone a river)",
"name": "en-verb"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "verb",
"related": [
{
"word": "build a bridge and get over it"
},
{
"word": "crocodile tears"
},
{
"word": "crying game"
}
],
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
"English idioms",
"English sarcastic terms",
"English terms with quotations"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "2008 March 4, Michele Hanson, “I cry over anything lately”, in The Guardian",
"text": "It is rather shaming to be quite so wet over nothing in particular, but at least Fielding does it too. He cries gallons over slow-motion bits at the ends of films, especially Gladiator, and begins to worship Roman values, then Italian footballers kissing in slo-mo to the strains of Nessun Dorma. Sniffle, sniffle. And QPR being relegated in 1996. He can cry you a river over that one, and over a darling little clump of daffodils growing by the traffic island.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person."
],
"links": [
[
"sarcastic",
"sarcastic"
],
[
"weep",
"weep"
],
[
"profuse",
"profuse"
],
[
"excessive",
"excessive"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic, often sarcastic) To weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person."
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic",
"often",
"sarcastic"
]
},
{
"categories": [
"English idioms",
"English sarcastic terms",
"English terms with quotations"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1968 October 3, A. B. Geraci, “Letter to Editor: PAT Should End Its Free Passes”, in Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, retrieved 2008-10-20, page 16",
"text": "Port Authority Transit should cry me a river. Before raising fares it should cut an unnecessary expense.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling."
],
"links": [
[
"sarcastic",
"sarcastic"
],
[
"sympathy",
"sympathy"
],
[
"complain",
"complain"
],
[
"snivel",
"snivel"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic, usually sarcastic, by extension) To try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling."
],
"tags": [
"broadly",
"idiomatic",
"sarcastic",
"usually"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"audio": "en-au-cry someone a river.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/2/29/En-au-cry_someone_a_river.ogg/En-au-cry_someone_a_river.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/29/En-au-cry_someone_a_river.ogg",
"tags": [
"Australia"
],
"text": "Audio (AU)"
}
],
"translations": [
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"word": "pillittää"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"tags": [
"interjection"
],
"word": "voi kyynel"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"word": "jemandem ordentlich was vorheulen"
},
{
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"word": "piagnucolare"
},
{
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"tags": [
"perfective"
],
"word": "popłakać się"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"note": "пла́каться в жиле́тку (plákatʹsja v žilétku, literally “cry into a waistcoat”)",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person"
},
{
"code": "wa",
"lang": "Walloon",
"sense": "to weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person",
"word": "tchoûler come ene Madlinne"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "to try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling",
"word": "kitistä"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "to try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling",
"word": "auf die Tränendrüse drücken"
},
{
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "to try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling",
"tags": [
"perfective"
],
"word": "nie popłacz się"
},
{
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "to try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling",
"word": "qué pena me das"
}
],
"wikipedia": [
"Cry Me a River (Arthur Hamilton song)"
],
"word": "cry someone a river"
}
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-05-03 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-05-02 using wiktextract (f4fd8c9 and c9440ce). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
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