Idioms
To burst into tears.
When someone suddenly starts crying heavily, we can say that they burst into tears.
Sally burst into tears when she found out she'd failed her test by one point.
It'll all end in tears.
We use the saying, it’ll all end in tears when we believe a particular situation will not end well, or any happiness will be short-lived.
The children are playing nicely together now, but it'll all end in tears. It always does.
I can't believe Jane and Alan are getting married after only knowing each other for two months. It'll all end in tears.
In floods of tears.
Someone who's in floods of tears just can't stop crying. They're so upset. They're inconsolable.
My daughter was in floods of tears after her boyfriend broke up with her.
Moved to tears. Someone is moved to tears when they experience such strong emotions that they want to cry.
The film was so sad. It moved her to tears.
I was moved to tears when I heard she hadn't got long to live.
Hold back the tears.
When you want to try and stop yourself from crying, you have to hold back or fight back the tears.
He was fighting back the tears when she said that she was leaving him.
She tried to hold back the tears, but in the end she cried her eyes out.
To break down and cry.
To break down and cry means to lose control of one's emotions and start crying. It's often used to refer to someone who's been trying not to cry, or they've been trying not to allow something to bother them, but finally they lose control of their emotions and start crying. He tried very hard to be brave about the news, but in the end he broke down in tears
To cry crocodile Tears.
If someone is crying crocodile tears, it means that they're only pretending to be sad.
Ignore her. She's not upset about it at all. She's just trying to get her way by crying crocodile tears.
To cry in one's beer.
When a person says that someone is crying in their beer, it means that they're feeling sorry for themselves.
Don't cry in your beer, man. I know you're sad that you didn't get that job, but there'll be plenty of other opportunities.
For crying out loud!
For crying out loud, is a common phrase used as an expression of frustration or surprise.
For crying out loud, I can't sleep. Stop snoring.
A crying need.
A crying need is used to describe a desperate need for something or someone.
There's a crying need for more food aid.
She has a crying need for a new phone or maybe a boyfriend who returns her calls
To cry oneself to sleep.
When a person cries themselves to sleep, it means to literally shed tears until one falls to sleep. Sarah was so upset that she cried herself to sleep.
It can also be used sarcastically to mean that one is not overly sad about the situation.
I am not happy that she's leaving, but let's just say that I'm not really crying myself to sleep about it either!
To cry, bloody murder
To cry nloody murder means to scream very loudly when one is in danger or when something very serious has happened.
Susan cried bloody murder when she saw a gigantic spider
To cry like a baby.
When someone says that a person is crying like a baby, it means that they're crying openly.
I never will understand why she watches that movie again and again as it makes her cry like a baby.
To cry on one’s shoulder.
When a person tells another person their problems in order to gain sympathy, it can be said that they're crying on their shoulders.
If you need a shoulder to cry on, you can always give me a call.
To be crying drunk
A person that is literally shedding tears often because of being overly intoxicated by alcohol can also be referred to ^. I never would've believed it until I saw her ^last night.
To bore someone to tears.
To bore a person to tears means to bore someone very much.
The meeting was awful. Everyone was bored to tears.
It's a crying shame.
To call something a crying shame means that it's an unfortunate situation.
It's a crying shame that he wasn't able to attend his daughter's birthday party. She was so upset.
To shed a tear over something.
It is to have an emotional reaction to something.
I must admit that I shed a tear when he left to catch his flight home
To cry all the way to the bank.
When it's said that a person will be crying all the way to the bank, it means that they've made a profit from doing something.
Sometimes something that one should be ashamed of.
I can't believe how much money he made from that business adventure. It was a horrible idea.
Yes, but I'm sure he's crying all the way to the bank.
To well up.
If you find yourself welling up, it means that you're on the verge of tears of crying. Your eyes feel moist.
I didn't want her to see that I was upset, but I could feel myself welling up when she told me.
To tear up. (pronounced ‘teer’)
This is similar to well up, although it suggests that you're starting to cry.
I must confess that when he proposed to me, I couldn't stop myself tearing up.
To sob or to cry one's heart out.
To sub one's heart out is to cry uncontrollably.
The little boy was so upset, he sobbed his heart out.
Let's finish with some happier ones. We don't cry just because we're sad. We can also cry because we're happy. Maybe we've received good news.
Some of the expressions we've covered can be used for happier situations.
Burst into tears.
She was so thrilled at getting the news. She burst into tears
To cry with relief.
If you cry with relief, you cry because you received good news about something you were worried about.
When her friend told her that the doctor said she didn't have cancer, she cried with relief.
Will you cry with relief when you pass your next English exam? Cambridge exam, IELTS?