sobering

[soh-ber-ing] / ˈsoʊ bər ɪŋ /

ADJECTIVE

serious

Synonyms

STRONGEST

dangerous deep difficult far-reaching grievous important major meaningful severe significant tough urgent

WEAK

arduous fateful fell formidable grave grim hard heavy laborious meaning business menacing momentous no joke no laughing matter of consequence operose out for blood playing hard ball pressing smoking strenuous strictly business threatening ugly unamusing unhumorous worrying

Antonyms

STRONGEST

calm easy facile friendly insignificant little meaningless minor small trivial unimportant worthless

WEAK

flippant funny happy light unserious

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But beneath the enthusiasm lies a far more sobering reality.

From Barron's • May 22, 2026

Rhodium Group, a research organization, in a sobering new report prepared on behalf of the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026

That is a sobering statistic for any manager - regardless of previous achievements.

From BBC • Apr. 25, 2026

"The implications are really sobering as this new finding essentially places these animals in 'double jeopardy," said Dr. Payne.

From Science Daily • Apr. 18, 2026

Already six people had died on Washington’s slopes in 1996, with the year barely half over—quite a sobering statistic—and there was plenty of room on the board for more.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson

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