All 3 Uses of
sober
in
And Then There Were None
- Philip Lombard's face changed—sobered.
p. 224.7 *sobered = became serious
- "That she'd take a kid out to sea and let it drown--you wouldn't think a woman could do a thing like that?"
I said to him: "Are you sure she did do it?"
He said and in saying it he seemed suddenly to sober up: "I'm quite sure."p. 291.2 *sober up = become less drunk
- Poor devil—elderly woman—simple job if I'd been sober.†
p. 72.0 *
Definitions:
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(1)
(sober as in: Talk to me when your sober.) not under the influence of alcohol
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(2)
(sober up as in: I need to sober up.) to become less drunk or intoxicated
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(3)
(sobering as in: a sobering thought) serious or calm (not silly or excited); or making one serious or less excited
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(4)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
More rarely, sober can refer to one who is rational rather than under the influence of extreme emotion. Also more rarely, it can reference that which is practical rather than fanciful -- such as "a more sober plan."