sober

Etymology

From Old French sobre, from Latin sōbrius, from se- (“without”) + ebrius (“intoxicated”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁egʷʰ- (“drink”). In the sense "not drunk," displaced native undrunken, from Old English undruncen.

adj

1. Not drunk; not intoxicated.
2. Not under the influence of any recreational drug.
3. Not given to excessive drinking of alcohol.
   Amid all the confusion and disorder that sin has introduced into the world, the Christian in union with God has a grace or Divine help that enables him to live the sober, self-restrained life. 1890, John Charles Cox, “The Sober Life”, in The Godly, Righteous, And Sober Life, page 35
   After eliminating alcohol from their lives, some sober individuals exclusively date nondrinkers. 2020-12-29, Hilary Sheinbaum, “Finding Love Without Alcohol”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
   Rose told me that she's sober. (Can we date this quote?), (Please provide the book title or journal name)
4. (figurative) Moderate; realistic; serious; not playful; not passionate; cool; self-controlled.
   Which is the finest and soberest state possible. 2005, Plato, translated by Lesley Brown, Sophist, page 230d
5. (of color) Dull; not bright or colorful.
6. Subdued; solemn; grave.
   See her sober over a sampler, or gay over a jointed baby. 1717, Alexander Pope, Letter from Edward Blount, Esq.
7. (Scotland) Poor; feeble.

verb

1. (often with up) To make or become sober.
   There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain, / And drinking largely sobers us again. 1711, Alexander Pope, An Essay on Criticism
   The night air may have sobered him a bit by the time they got back to Beattock. 1950 January, David L. Smith, “A Runaway at Beattock”, in Railway Magazine, page 53
2. (often with up) To overcome or lose a state of intoxication.
   It took him hours to sober up.
3. To moderate one's feelings; to accept a disappointing reality after losing one's ability to believe in a fantastic goal.
   Losing his job was a sobering experience.