weep

Laugh and the world laughs with you; weep and you weep alone.

Prov. When you are happy, people will want to be around you and share your happiness, but when you are sad, people will avoid you. Nancy: When Harry and I were dating, all our friends invited us places and called to say hello. Now that we've broken up, they treat me as if I don't exist. Jane: Laugh and the world laughs with you; weep and you weep alone.

See also: alone, and, laugh, world

read it and weep

Fig. read the bad news; hear the bad news. I'm sorry to bring you the bad news. Read it and weep.

See also: and, read

shed crocodile tears and cry crocodile tears

Fig. to shed false tears; to pretend that one is weeping. The child wasn't really hurt, but she shed crocodile tears anyway. He thought he could get his way if he cried crocodile tears.

See also: shed, tear

weep about someone or something

to cry about someone or something; to mourn someone or something. She was weeping about her grandfather, who had passed away in the night. There is no use weeping about spilled milk.

weep for (someone or an animal)

to cry out of sorrow for someone or an animal. She wept for her puppy when it was terribly sick. Please don't weep for me after I'm gone.

weep for joy

Fig. to cry out of happiness. She was so happy, she wept for joy. We all wept for joy at the safe return of the child.

See also: joy

weep over someone or something

to cry about someone or something. No need to weep over me. I'll do all right. There is no point in weeping over something you can't do anything about.

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shed/weep crocodile tears

to show sadness that is not sincere

Usage notes: Some stories say that crocodiles cry while they are eating what they have attacked.

Political leaders shed crocodile tears while allowing the war to continue.

See also: shed, tear