▪ I. cry, n.
(kraɪ)
Pl. cries. Forms: 3–5 cri, 3– cry. Also 4–7 crie, crye, (4–5 krie, krye); pl. 4–7 cryes.
[a. F. cri = Pr. Cat. crit, Sp. grito, It. grido, f. stem of crier (cridar, gridare) to cry.]
I. 1. a. The loud and chiefly inarticulate utterance of emotion; esp. of grief, pain, or terror.
| c 1275 Lay. 11991 Nas neuere no man..þat i-horde þane cri [c 1205 þesne weop] hou hii gradde to þan halwes, þat his heorte ne mihte beo sori for þane deolfulle cri. 1297 R. Glouc. (1724) 139 The cry of þe folk þat me slow, þe oþere broȝte in drede. 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 478 By þat cry men knaw þan Whether it [the infant] be man or weman. 1393 Gower Conf. I. 115 With such weping and with such cry Forth..he goth. c 1440 Ipomydon 1951 The lady herde hym make suche crye. 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. iii. 23 With hollow houling, and lamenting cry. 1604 Shakes. Oth. v. i. 38 (Qo.) 'Tis some mischance; the cry is very direful. 1813 Scott Rokeby iii. xxx, Their wail and their cry. |
b. (with a and pl.). A shout or exclamation of pain, grief, terror, etc.; a scream, shriek, wail.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 4393 (Cott.) Sco [Potiphar's wife] gaue a cri þat all moght here. c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) iv. 13 Scho turned agayne with a hidous crie. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon lxvii. 231 He herde the cryes & wepynges that she made. 1605 Shakes. Lear ii. iv. 43 He rais'd the house with loud and coward cries. 1771 E. Griffith tr. Viaud's Shipwreck 25 A Dutchman..who had been..the loudest in his plaints and cries. 1840 Dickens Old. C. Shop lxxi, He dropped into his chair again, and..uttered a cry never to be forgotten. c 1850 Arab. Nts. 636 Those mournful cries, which women usually utter on the death of their husbands. |
c. An exclamation expressive of any emotion.
| 1813 Shelley Q. Mab vii. 11 The insensate mob Uttered a cry of triumph. 1891 Barrett Sin of Olga Z. III. xlvii. 193 He drew her to him with a cry of joy. |
d. in Pathol. (See quot. 1882.)
| 1843 Sir T. Watson Lect. Physic I. 630 The cry [in epilepsy]..is sometimes a husky groan, but generally a piercing and terrifying scream. 1882 Syd. Soc. Lex., Epileptic cry, a peculiar discordant cry or yell occasionally uttered just before the respiration is arrested in an epileptic fit. Hydrocephalic cry, a sharp, plaintive cry uttered by a child suffering from hydrocephalus. |
† 2. a. Shouting, calling in a voice loud and uttered with effort. Obs.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 16304 (Cott.) Foluand him wit cri. c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 5382 Þe Sarazynz after him prikede..With noyse & eke with crye. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 102 Crye, clamor, vociferacio. |
b. A shout, a loud and excited utterance.
| c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. I. 294 Þis crie is warnynge of aungels. 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 63 Altogether with one crie called him on every side Traytor. 1653 H. Cogan tr. Pinto's Trav. lviii. 228 Yet could they..neither with their cries, nor menaces, stop them all. 1839 T. Beale Sperm Whale 314 Canoes filled with natives..uttering loud cries, and appearing much excited. 1855 Macaulay Hist. Eng. IV. 771 The Ayes raised so loud a cry that it was believed that they were the majority. |
c. The loud and excited utterance of words; the words as shouted.
| 1382 Wyclif. Matt. xxv. 6 Sothely at myd niȝt a cry was maad, Loo! the spouse cummeth. 1548 Hall Chron. 118 b, The people..cried: live king Henry, live king Henry. After whiche crie passed, the noble men..did to hym homage. 1605 Shakes. Macb. v. v. 2 The cry is still they come. 1783 Gentl. Mag. LIII. ii. 822 A cry of Hear him! Hear him! 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. I. v. vi, There has been a cry every where; To the Bastille! 1839 T. Beale Sperm Whale 169 Hearing the loud cry of ‘a man overboard’. |
d. The united shouting with which seamen, etc. accompany their combined exertions.
| c 1440 Promp. Parv. 102 Crye of schypmen, that ys clepyd haue howe (P. halowe). 1769 Falconer Dict. Marine, Hola-ho, a cry which answers to yoe-hoe. 1850 W. B. Clarke Wreck of Favorite 21 By the signal and well known cry—without which, apparently, no British tar..can haul a rope..they united their strength. |
3. An importunate call, a prayer, entreaty; an appeal for mercy, justice, etc.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 4715 (Cott.) Bi for þe king þai com wit cri, And said, lauerd, þou ha merci. a 1300 E.E. Psalter ci. 2 Laverd, here þe bede of me, And mi krie mote come to þe. 1382 Wyclif Prov. xxi. 13 Who stoppeth his ere at the cri of the pore. 1597 Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. lxi. §4 The unresistible cries of suppliants calling upon you for mercy. 1649 W. Blithe Eng. Improv. Impr. (1652) 181 It is my constant cry to my own Husbandmen to take heed of Plough balking. 1704 Pope Windsor For. 85 Succeeding Monarchs heard the subjects cries. 1848 Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. 147 The cry of the whole people was for a free Parliament. |
† 4. A formal authoritative summons; a ‘call’.
| a 1300 Havelok 270 And forto hauen alle at his cri, At his wille, at his merci. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 279 Knyghtes, lordes of tounes, and alle com to his crie. c 1330 Amis & Amil. 207 Than hadde the douke..A douhti knight, at crie. 1483 Caxton Gold. Leg. 179/4 Thenne assemblyd alle the cyte of Luques at the crye of the fader. |
† 5. a. An announcement made in public in a loud voice; a proclamation. Obs. in general sense.
| [1292 Britton i. xxiii. §13 Qi qe face encountre la crye, qe il eyt la prisoun par un an et un jour.] 1303 R. Brunne Handl. Synne 906 Þan commaundede þey, and made a cry..On satyrday shulde men noun ryngge. c 1350 Will. Palerne 2249 Wich a cri has he cried..þurch hest of þemperour. a 1400–50 Alexander 981 He makes a crie þat alle þe curte..Suld put þaim in to presens. a 1502 in Arnolde Chron. (1811) 90 Ony man that hangith not out a lanterne..acordyng to the Mayrs crye. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon liii. 181 Kyng yuoryn made a crye thorow all the cyte that euery man sholde be armed. 1837 Sir F. Palgrave Merch. & Friar iv. (1844) 139 A grave..personage read..the ‘crye’, which..announced the appointed meeting of the great Council of the realm. |
† b. pl. The proclamation of banns of marriage; the ‘askings’. Obs.
| c 1315 Shoreham 71 Me schal maky the cryes At cherche oppe holy dayȝes thre. |
c. The proclamation of wares to be sold in the streets; the words in which wares are cried, as London cries.
| 1642 Howell For. Trav. (Arb.) 25 Let his Chamber be street ward to take in the common cry and Language, and [to] see how the Town is serv'd. 1762–71 H. Walpole Vertue's Anecd. Paint. (1786) III. 239 A book of fencing, the cries of London, and the procession at the coronation of William and Mary were designed by him. 1834 H. Martineau Farrers i. 3 The six o'clock cries are not all over. 1857 E. Fitzgerald Lett. (1889) I. 252 Some old Street cry, no doubt. |
d. hue and cry: see hue.
† 6. The mingled noise of people shouting; clamour, tumultuous noise, outcry. Obs.
| c 1275 Lay. 27034 Þane cry hii of horde of þan Romleode. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 244 Þer was contek & crie. Ibid. 245 Men said þe wrath & cri com þorgh þe lord Tiptofte. c 1400 Destr. Troy 5915 Myche clamour & crye was kyde in þe ost. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 103 Crye, or grete noyse a-mong the peple, tumultus. |
7. a. Rumour, public report.
| 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 340 A crye and noyes went through the Citie, how the king and the Maior were lyke to be slayne. 1604 Shakes. Oth. iv. i. 127 Why, the cry goes, that you marry her. 1608 Yorksh. Trag. i. ix, Knight..Murder'd his children? 1st Gent. So the cry goes. 1668 Temple Let. to Sir J. Temple Wks. 1731 II. 122 For ought I can judge by the Cry of the Court, he wants it [money] more than I do. 1864 E. Capern Devon Provinc., All the Cry, the report, something generally talked of. |
b. The public voice loudly uttered in approval, denunciation, etc.; the vox populi.
| 1628 Earle Microcosm., Vulgar-spirited Man (Arb.) 70 One that followes meerely the common crye, and makes it louder by one. 1691–8 Norris Pract. Disc. 85 Vice will always have the Cry of her side. 1692 Locke Toleration iii. ix, He that troubles not his Head at all about Religion, what other can so well suit him as the National: with which the Cry and Preferments go. 1768 W. Gilpin Ess. Prints 116 The cry, in his day, ran wholly in favour of antiquity. a 1842 Arnold Later Rom. Commw. (1846) I. iv. 120 The popular cry was loud against him. |
8. A form of words in which popular opinion on any matter finds general utterance; an opinion very generally expressed.
| 1688 S. Penton Guardians Instr. 68 The common Cry is, that it is time enough to learn their Books when they come to be seven or eight years old. 1713 Steele Englishman No. 50. 323 Then the Cry would be, Images were put up for the common and ignorant People to worship. 1786 T. Jefferson Writ. (1859) II. 9 The general cry that our commerce was in distress. 1848 Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. 387 A cry was..raised that the penny post was a Popish contrivance. |
9. a. Something shouted to encourage and rally a party; a watchword; a war-cry, a battle-cry; a rallying cry. lit. and fig.
| 1548 Hall Chron. 138 b, The lord Talbot made a crye, as though he would assaile the gate. 1591 Shakes. 1 Hen. VI, ii. i. 79 The Cry of Talbot serues me for a Sword. 1744 Berkeley Siris §368 Truth is the cry of all, but the game of a few. 1850 Tait's Mag. XVII. 398/2 Their names are no longer ‘a cry’ and a test. 1883 Manch. Exam. 23 Nov. 5/1 A revived Islamism was one of the cries by which Arabi sought to inspire his countrymen. |
b. esp. A political or electioneering watchword; a legislative proposal or scheme designed as a rallying cry for the members of a party in a contest.
| 1799 Burke Corr. (1844) II. 264 It would be well if gentlemen, before they joined in a cry against any establishment, had well considered for what purpose that cry is raised. 1831 Brewster Newton (1855) II. xix. 218 The Tory election cry..was ‘the Church in danger’. 1844 Disraeli Coningsby ii. i, ‘It is a very good cry though, if there be no other’ said Tadpole. 1884 Gladstone in Standard 29 Feb. 2/7 Redistribution is their favourite cry. |
10. A fit of weeping: a good cry, an energetic fit of weeping that relieves the feelings (colloq.).
| 1852 J. B. Owen in Visc. Ingestre Meliora i. 138 She was not sure but a good cry would do herself good, too. 1890 Eng. Illust. Mag. Christmas No. 162 Mrs. Macdonald had her cry out. |
11. The vocal utterance of animals; esp. the particular call of any animal.
| c 1300 K. Alis. 5410 Sory foules..Cry hy hadden als a pecok. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 213 The Bats..sqweake and call one the other, in most offensive cryes. 1694 Acc. Sev. Late Voy. ii. (1711) 90 His Cry is like the Cry of some Ravens that I have..heard. 1771 E. Griffith tr. Viaud's Shipwreck 151 The different species of animals were to be distinguished by their cries. 1841 James Brigand iii, The distant cry of a wolf. 1877 C. C. Abbott Waste-Land Wand. vi. 170 The sora has a cry that is peculiar in its marked resemblance to the rattle of our green frog. |
12. a. The yelping of hounds in the chase.
| 1535 R. Layton in Lett. Supp. Monast. (Camden Soc. 1843) 71 To kepe the dere within the woode, therby to have the better cry with his howndes. 1749 Fielding Tom Jones xviii. xiii, Sweeter music than the finest cry of dogs in England. 18.. Whittier King Volmer & Elsie iv, With cry of hounds and blare of hunter's horn. |
b. Hence various phrases: e.g. to give cry, to open upon the cry; full cry, full pursuit; also fig.
| 1589 R. Harvey Pl. Perc. 6 Will you..run vpon a Christen body, with full cry and open mouth? 1649 Fuller Just Man's Fun. 13 Hear the whole kennel of Atheists come in with a full crie. 1684 R. H. Sch. Recreat. 16 Being in full Cry and main Chase, comfort and cheer them with Horn and Voice. 1710 Palmer Proverbs 53 He gives out this cue to his admirers, who are sure to open upon the cry 'till they are hoarse again. 1858 Hawthorne Fr. & It. Jrnls. II. 32 All offering their merchandise at full cry. 1891 Rev. of Reviews July 25 The journalists gave cry after the Prince, like a pack of hounds when they strike the trail of a fox. |
13. transf. a. A pack of hounds.
| 1590 Shakes. Mids. N. iv. i. 131 My hounds are bred out of the Spartan kinde..A cry more tuneable Was neuer..cheer'd with horne. 1601 R. Yarington Two Lament. Traj. iii. ii. in Bullen O. Pl. IV, The little flocked hound..surer of his sent, Then any one in all the crie beside. 1611 Cotgr., Meute, a kennell, or crie, of hounds. 1697 G. Dampier in Phil. Trans. XX. 51 A Gentleman's Cry of Dogs. 1890 Daily News 3 Nov. 5/3 With four packs of staghounds, sixteen of foxhounds..besides not a few of those small ‘cries’ of beagles, which afford such excellent sport in their way. |
† b. contemptuously. A ‘pack’ (of people).
| 1602 Shakes. Ham. iii. ii. 289 Get me a Fellowship in a crie of Players. a 1658 Cleveland London Lady 35 A small Cry of Tenants. |
14. The creaking, crackling noise emitted by some metals, esp. tin, when bent.
| 1882 Nature XXV. 374 The cry of tin is due to crystalline structure. |
15. Combined with an adv., as cry-out, the act of crying out, exclamation, outcry.
| 1814 Jane Austen Mansf. Park (1886). 1816 ― Emma i. viii, A general cry-out upon her extreme good luck. 1852 J. Nutt in Visc. Ingestre Meliora I. 199 The constant cry⁓out was that the filth came from their neighbours. |
II. Phrases.
16. great (or much) cry and little wool: the proverbial outcome of shearing hogs; hence, much noise or fuss with small results, much ado about nothing. Also more cry than wool.
| c 1460–1809 [see wool n. 1 g]. 1579 Gosson Sch. Abuse (Arb.) 28 As one said at the shearing of hogs, great cry and litle wool, much adoe and smal help. 1625 Hart Anat. Ur. ii. x. 119 Parturient montes, etc...Great cry and little wooll. 1684 T. Goddard Plato's Demon 301 When there is a great cry, there is not always the more wooll. a 1893 Mod. Sc. Muckle cry an' little woo', As the deil said whan he shore the soo. 1952 V. W. Brooks Confident Years xviii. 197 Her diary was much more cry than wool and Mary MacLane was a startling figure only because the times were so colourless and mild. |
† 17. out of (or without) all cry: a. beyond all cavil or dispute; to a certainty; certain; b. (also, out of cry) beyond measure; to excess; desperately.
(Cf. out of all ho, out of all whooping, and see ho n.)
| 1563 Golding Cæsar (1565) 77 As if the vyctory had bene theyr own out of al cry. 1569 Turberv. Poems, In their countrey downe is rife, and feathers out of cry. 1583 Golding Calvin on Deut. xxvii. 163 The proofes were so notable as the matter ought to be out of all crie. 1589 Nashe Martins Months minde 36 The griefe whereof vext him out of all crie. 1594 Taming of Shrew C iv b, For Ile so cram me downe the tarts..out of all crie. 1598 R. Bernard tr. Terence (1607) 54 Misere hanc amat, he loues her out a crie. 1598 Chapman Blind Beggar Plays (1889) 4/2 Oh! Master, tis..without all cry. 1690 W. Walker Idiom. Anglo-Lat. 125 You commend them out of all cry. 1875 Lowell Spenser Wks. (1890) IV. 347 He sometimes ‘hunted the letter’, as it was called, out of all cry. |
18. within cry of: within calling distance. a far cry: a long way, a very long distance.
| 1632 Lithgow Trav. ix. (1682) 396 Villages and Houses..each one was within cry of another. 1819 Scott Leg. Montrose xii, One of the Campbells replied, ‘It is a far cry to Lochow’; a proverbial expression of the tribe, meaning that their ancient hereditary domains lay beyond the reach of an invading enemy. 1850 Tait's Mag. XVII. 75/1 In those days it was a ‘far cry’ from Orkney to Holyrood; nevertheless the cry' at length penetrated the royal ear. 1885 Athenæum 18 Apr. 498/3 It is a far cry from the ascidian to bookbinding and blue china, yet it is a cry that can be achieved by Mr. Lang. |
▪ II. cry, v.
(kraɪ)
Pa. tense and pple. cried (kraɪd). Forms: 3–5 crie-n, (3 creie-n), 4–7 crie, crye, 4– cry, (4 crei, crij, cri, criȝe, criy). pa. tense 3–5 cryde, 4–5 criede, cryede, 4–7 cride, cryed, 4– cried, (4 crijd, crid, creid, 7 cri'd, 7–8 cry'd).
[a. F. crie-r = Pr. and OSp. cridar, It. gridare, Sp. gritar:—L. quirītāre to raise a plaintive cry, to wail, scream, shriek out, cry aloud, bewail, lament, orig. (according to Varro) to implore the aid of the Quirītes or Roman citizens: ‘quiritare dicitur is qui Quiritum fidem clamans implorat’.]
I. 1. trans. To entreat, beg, beseech, implore, in a loud and emoved or excited voice. † a. with the thing begged as direct object. Obs. (Now cry for.) Hence to cry quarter, truce: see these words.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 20746 (Cott.) Þan crijd [G. creid] he merci atte last. Ibid. 1131 (Gött.) His blod..fines noght wrake to crij [v.r. cri, crye, cry]. 1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. vii. 338 Alle..þat with good will Confessen hem and crien mercy. Ibid. C. viii. 109 A bedreden womman To crye a largesse by-fore oure lorde. 1597 Shakes. Lover's Compl. 42 Or monarch's hands that let not bounty fall Where want cries some, but where excess begs all. 1668 Pepys Diary 18 Dec., He became as calm as a lamb, and owned..and cried excuse. |
† b. with the person addressed as indirect (dative) object, and the thing begged as direct object; esp. in to cry him mercy, and analogous phrases. Obs. (The earliest known English use.)
| a 1225 Ancr. R. 44 Crieð him eorne merci & forgiuenesse. a 1240 Lofsong in Cott. Hom. 205 Ich..creie þe leafdi merci. 1297 R. Glouc. (1724) 381 He..cryde hym mylce & ore. 1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. xxi. 90 Þe knyght..cryed iesu mercy. 1483 Caxton Gold. Leg. 81/1 Whan they repente..and crye their god mercy. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon lxxxi. 249 Syr, I crye you mercy for goddes sake doo not to me so grete an outrage. 1672 Villiers (Dk. Buckhm.) Rehearsal i. i. (Arb.) 29 No, cry you mercy; this is my book. |
† c. with on, to him, in place of the dative. Obs.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 2789 (Gött.) Ȝerne on þaim he crid merci. Ibid. App. ii. 739 (Brit. Mus. Add. MS.) The folke hem bad mercy to crie to iesu cryst. 1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. xiv. 13 Þe kynge cride to abraam mercy. 1795 Southey Joan of Arc vii. 521 This Alen{cced}on..Cried mercy to his conqueror. |
† d. with const. him (to him) of (grace). Obs.
| 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. i. 77 Þenne knelede I on my kneos and criȝed hire of grace. [1393 Ibid. C. iii. 1 And cryede to hure of grace.] |
2. To call in supplication or reverential invocation (on, upon, unto, to a person). a. intr. Obs. or arch.
| c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 15/479 On god huy criden and wepen sore. a 1300 Cursor M. 6789 Crie to me þei shal And I forsoþe wol here her cal. c 1380 Wyclif Serm. Sel. Wks. I. 94 Þei maken us dreden and crie on Crist. c 1440 York Myst. xxxiii. 62 Why crye ȝe so on me? 1550 Crowley Way to Wealth 213 Crienge and callinge vpon them in thy nede. 1611 Shakes. Wint. T. iii. iii. 97 How he cride to mee for helpe. a 1850 Rossetti Dante & Circ. i. (1874) 176 She is cried upon In all the prayers my heart puts up alone. |
b. with object sentence containing the utterance, or clause expressing its purport. (Now merged in 3.)
| 1297 R. Glouc. (1724) 495 Criinde pitosliche, that he ssolde..abbe reuthe of Cristendom. a 1300 Cursor M. 4737 (Cott.) Criand..‘Ha reuth on vs, þou blisced man’. c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 898 Alle crieden..Haue mercy Lord vp on vs. 1548 Hall Chron. 190 b, Criyng on his men to do valiauntly. 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. ii. 21 Shee..with ruefull countenaunce, Cride, Mercy, mercy, Sir, vouchsafe to show. 1659 B. Harris Parival's Iron Age 149 The Foot..was deserted by the Horse..and cryed to them to stand, and make good their ground. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 455 He..Thus mourning, to his Mother Goddess cry'd, Mother Cyrene [etc.]. 1886 R. C. Leslie Sea-painter's Log 27 Turning a..deaf ear to the solicitations of admiring companions when they cry, ‘Do let I come wi'ye, Bill’. |
c. fig. (intr.) Of things. Cf. 7 and cry out.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 1130 (Cott.) His blod on erth sced lijs Efter wrak to me it crijs. 1552 R. Ascham in Lett. Lit. Men (Camden) 12 Mischief..so moche as did crye to God for a generall plage. 1591 Shakes. 1 Hen. VI, v. iv. 53 Maiden blood, thus rigorously effus'd, Will cry for Vengeance at the gates of heaven. 1607 ― Timon ii. i. 20 But tell him, My Vses cry to me. 1711 Steele Spect. No. 258 ¶3 Sir, these Things cry loud for Reformation. 1835 Thirlwall Greece I. ix. 344 Injuries and insults..which cried aloud for vengeance. |
3. intr. To utter the voice loudly and with exclamatory effort, whether under the influence of emotion, as indignation, fear, pain, surprise, or merely in order to be heard afar, or above any noise that would prevent the ordinary speaking voice from being heard or distinguished; to call aloud (to a person), shout, vociferate.
It differs from bawl, scream, screech, shriek, in that these describe particular tones used in crying.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 4401 (Gött.) And quan i crid ful sone i-fledd [v.r. he fledde]. Ibid. 22607 (Cott.) He sal..Bath cri and brai for dute and drede. 1382 Wyclif Acts xix. 28 Thei..cryeden, seiynge Greet [1388 is the] Dian of Ephesians. c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 225 Why cridestow? who hath the doon offence? c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) xxxiii. 151 Grete noyse of waters þat a man may noȝt here anoþer, crie he neuer so hie. a 1450 Knt. de la Tour-Landry (1868) 9 Men synging and crienge, iaping, and plaieng. 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. v. 33 The damned ghosts in torments fry, And with sharp shrilling shrieks doe bootlesse cry. 1611 Bible Isa. xxxiv. 14 The satyr shall cry to his fellow. c 1684 Frost of 1683–4 (Percy Soc.) 19 The watermen do loudly cry and bawl. 1824 Scott Redgauntlet Let. xii, If onybody stops ye, cry on me. 1830 Tennyson Mermaid 26 Call to each other and whoop and cry All night, merrily. |
† b. in connexion with sale by candle (candle 5 d). Obs.
| 1660 Pepys Diary 6 Nov., We met all, for the sale of two ships by an inch of candle..I observed how..they all do cry, and we have much to do to tell who did cry last. |
c. quasi-trans. with complemental accusative.
| 1674 Leighton in Lauderdale Papers (1885) III. xxxiii. 55 The germans cri'd their throats dry with calling for a generall Councill. |
4. trans. To utter or pronounce in a loud exclamatory voice, to call out. The object may be a. a description or term for the utterance; b. the word or words uttered; c. a clause stating their effect.
| a. a 1300 Cursor M. 16388 (Cott.) Þis word ai mar and mar to cri all þai be-gan. 1382 Wyclif Acts xix. 32 Othere men cryeden othir thing sothli the chirche was confused. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon lxvii. 230 When he sawe his tyme, he cryed his worde and token. a 1635 Corbet Poems (1807) 16 What cryes the town? What cryes the University? |
| b. 1382 Wyclif Acts xix. 34 O vois of alle men was maad, criynge..Greet Dian of Ephisians. 1598 Shakes. Merry W. v. v. 209, I went to her in greene, and cried Mum, and she cride budget. 1610 ― Temp. ii. ii. 53 For she had a tongue..Would cry to a Sailor goe hang. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 763 With his last Voice, Eurydice, he cry'd. 1709 Prior Despairing Sheph., And yet I pardon you, she cry'd. 1749 Fielding Tom Jones v. xii, Lest grave men and politicians..may cry pish at it. 1831 Blackw. Mag. XXIX. 564 Ten thousand voices cried, ‘The King! The King!’ |
| c. 1668 Culpepper & Cole Barthol. Anat. i. xviii. 49 He cries that [this Cavity] is so small, that it will hardly admit a little Pea. 1680 Otway Orphan i. i, He..cries He's old, and willingly would be at rest. 1726 G. Shelvocke Voy. round World (1757) 249 This, they cried, was a poor dependance. 1847 Tennyson Princess iv. 463 Some crying there was an army in the land. |
d. spec. To shout (a war-cry, watchword, or the like).
| 1375 Barbour Bruce xv. 497 Than his ensenȝe he can hye cry. 1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. II. 78 Loud on hicht he cryit hes his seinȝe. 1548 Hall Chron. 103 b, Thei issued out of the castle criyng sainct George, Talbot. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 188 They presently shake and vibrate their Swords upon their Shields, crying aloud Nayroe. |
5. To announce publicly so as to be heard by all concerned; to give oral public notice of, to proclaim; to appoint or ordain by proclamation.
| c 1300 Beket 2477 Forte the dai were icome, That was icrid into al that lond that he scholde beo up ynome. c 1340 Cursor M. 5497 (Fairf.) He lete cry a parlement. c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) Pref. 2 He will ger crie it openly in þe middell of a toune. c 1465 Eng. Chron. (Camden) 6 He leet crie and ordeyne general justis at Londoun, in Smythfeld. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon liii. 179 The kynge caused to be cryed..that none sholde by so hardy to speke. 1646 Buck Rich. III, i. 14 Those who cry him so deepe an homicide. 1667 Milton P.L. ii. 514 They bid cry With Trumpets regal sound the great result. 1883 Century Mag. XXVI. 446/1, I was induced to outbid..bids that were cried by the auctioneer, but that had never been made at all. |
| absol. 1605 Shakes. Lear v. i. 48 Let but the Herald cry, And Ile appeare againe. |
b. To announce (a sale, things for sale); to sell by outcry; to offer for sale by auction or by hawking in the streets.
| 1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. i. 226 Kokes and here knaues crieden hote pyes, hote! 1483 Cath. Angl. 82 To Cry in þ⊇ merketh, preconizare. 1586 T. B. La Primaud. Fr. Acad. 318 Diogenes when he was to be sold for a slave..mocked the Serjeant that cried him to sale. 1632 Massinger Maid of Hon. iii. i, I will cry broom, or cat's-meat, in Palermo. 1677 Act 29 Chas. II c. 7 Noe person..shall publickly cry, shew forth, or expose to sale, any wares, merchandizes, fruit, herbs, goods, or chattells. 1701 W. Wotton Hist. Rome 265 He went to the Camp, when he heard the Sale was cry'd, to bid for the Empire. 1875 Howells Foregone Concl. 1 A peasant crying pots of pinks and roses. |
Proverb. to cry stinking fish.
| 1660 Jer. Taylor Duct. Dubit. (1671) 805 Does ever any man cry stinking fish to be sold? 1825 Mrs. Cameron Crooked Paths (Houlston Tracts, I. xxv. 5) ‘Sir,’ answered the woman, looking wise, ‘nobody cries stinking fish.’ 1861 Thackeray B. Lyndon (1878) IV. iii. 444 This was not true; but what is the use of crying bad fish? |
c. To give public oral notice of (things lost or found).
| 1596 Nashe Saffron Walden 114 His Master..is readie to..get his Nouice cride in euerie market Towne in Essex. a 1626 Bacon Max. & Uses Com. Law (1636) 65 [The strayes] to be seized..and to be cryed in three markets adjoyning. 1799 S. Freeman Town Off. 58 Persons who take up any stray beast, shall cause him to be posted and cried. a 1845 Barham Ingol. Leg., Knight & Lady xiii, We've sent round the Crier, and had him well cried. 1885 Sir J. F. Stephen in Law Times' Rep. LIII. 782/2 The prisoner found a purse and money, and..heard soon afterwards that it was cried in the street. |
d. To proclaim the marriage banns of; to ‘ask’ in church. (Still in Scotland and New England.)
| 1775 Sheridan Rivals v. i, Or perhaps be cried three times in a country church. 1867 Lowell Biglow Papers Ser. ii. Introd. The Courtin', An all I know is they wuz cried In meetin', come nex Sunday. 1875 W. M{supc}Ilwraith Guide Wigtownshire 123 Loving couples landing on the Saturday got ‘cried’ on the Sunday, and were married, firm and fast, on the Monday. |
e. To read or recite aloud in the streets.
| 1710 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) VI. 572 The justices have ordered the constables to take up all those that cry such libells. 1855 Macaulay Hist. Eng. III. 503 Broadsides of prose and verse written in his praise were cried in every street. |
† 6. To summon in a loud voice; to call (to come). Obs.
| c 1420 Pallad. on Husb. ii. 10 The medes clensed tyme is now to make, And beestes..from hem to crie. 1470–85 Malory Arthur x. li, There he..cryed vnto harneis alle that myghte bere armes. |
† 7. To call for, demand loudly. Also fig. of things. Obs.
| 1604 Shakes. Oth. i. iii. 277 Th' Affaire cries hast: And speed must answer it. 1621 Fletcher Pilgrim i. ii, This cries money for reward, good store too. 1798 Southey Inscriptions xv, The innocent blood cried vengeance. |
† 8. To extol; = cry up. Obs.
| 1613 Shakes. Hen. VIII, i. i. 27 Now this Maske Was cry'de incompareable. a 1625 Fletcher Hum. Lieutenant i. i, When all men cry him. 1628 Earle Microcosm., Vulgar-spirited Man (Arb.) 70 That cries Chaucer for his Money aboue all our English Poets. |
9. intr. To utter inarticulate exclamations, esp. of grief, lamentation, or suffering, such as are usually accompanied with tears; to weep and wail.
| 1297 R. Glouc. (1724) 13 Heo cryede and wep with sorwe ynow. c 1300 Seyn Julian 179 Þe Justice bigan to wepe and crie. 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 475 Bot ligge and sprawel and cry and wepe. c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) iv. 13 Scho began to crie, as a thing þat had mykill sorowe. c 1450 Merlin 261 He be-gan to make grete sorow, and cried high and cleer that thei with-ynne vpon the walles myght wele it here. 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. iii. 25 She gan..to..cry, and curse, and raile, and rend her heare. 1599 Shakes. Much Ado iii. iii. 69 If you heare a child crie in the night you must call to the nurse, and bid her still it. 1611 Bible Ezek. xxvi. 15 When the wounded crie, when the slaughter is made in the midst of thee. 1850 Tennyson In Mem. liv. 18 An infant crying in the night: An infant crying for the light: And with no language but a cry. 1884 J. Parker Apost. Life III. 124 You will never persuade the world that Jeremiah did anything but cry. |
b. trans. with into, out of, etc.
| 1746 W. Horsley Fool (1748) I. 196 We must..not let..[them] whine and cry us into a tame submission. |
10. This passes in later use into: To weep, shed tears; used even where no sound is uttered.
| c 1532 G. Du Wes Introd. Fr. in Palsgr. 939 To crye or wepe, braire. 1598 Shakes. Merry W. iii. i. 21 'Mercie on mee, I haue great dispositions to cry. a 1631 Donne (J.), Her who still weeps with spungy eyes, And her who is dry cork, and never cries. 1662 Pepys Diary 14 Oct., And she so cruel a hypocrite that she can cry when she pleases. 1742 Chesterfield Lett. I. xci. 252 Julius Caesar..even cried when he saw the statue of Alexander the Great. 1840 P. Parley's Annual I. 116 What! have you not left off crying yet? I shall give you something to cry for before you go home. 1883 G. Lloyd Ebb & Flow II. 108 Poor Pauline, who cried copiously. |
b. quasi-trans. to cry tears, cry one's eyes or heart out, cry oneself blind, sick, to sleep, etc.
| 1611 Shakes. Cymb. iii. iv. 46 And cry my selfe awake? 1704 Cibber Careless Husb. i. i, I could cry my Eyes out. Ibid., I should cry my self sick in some dark Closet. 1831 Blackw. Mag. XXIX. 524/1 A sickly infant, which a stern stepmother bids cry itself to sleep. 1862 Kingsley Water Bab. iv. (1886) 157 He..sat down..and cried salt tears from sheer disappointment. 1864 Tennyson Grandmother x, I cried myself well-nigh blind. 1888 Mrs. Oliphant Joyce I. 169 When she had cried her heart out. |
11. intr. Of an animal: To give forth a loud call or vocal sound; to utter its characteristic call.
| 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. v. xxiii. (1495) 131 Amonge byrdes and foules..the male cryeth and not the female. c 1450 Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 576/44 Cuculo, to crye as a Cokow. Ibid. 607/3 Recano, to crye as a tygre. 1563 Fulke Meteors (1640) 51 Frogs crying..forewarne us of a tempest. 1610 Shakes. Temp. v. i. 90 There I cowch when Owles doe crie. 1821 Byron Heav. & Earth iii. 732 Hark, hark! the sea-birds cry! 1839 Thackeray Major Gahagan iv, The camels began to cry. |
b. Said of the yelping of hounds in the chase.
| 1486 Bk. St. Albans E viij a, Whi theys houndes all Bayen and cryen. 1601 Shakes. Twel. N. ii. v. 135 Sowter will cry vpon't for all this, though it bee as ranke as a Fox. 1602 ― Ham. iv. v. 109 How cheerefully on the false Traile they cry, Oh this is Counter you false Danish Dogges. |
c. quasi-trans.
| 1796 Burke Regic. Peace i. Wks. VIII. 143 Like importunate Guinea-fowls crying one note day and night. |
† 12. transf. Of things inanimate: To emit a wheezing or creaking sound. Obs.
| 1523 Fitzherb. Husb. §10 If it synge or crye, or make any noyse vnder thy fete, than it is to wete to sowe. 1781 [see Cry out]. |
II. Phrases and combinations.
* Phrases.
13. In many phraseological expressions, as to cry aim, cock, craven, creak, cupboard, fie, halves, harrow, havoc, mew, quarter, quit, quits, quittance, shame, truce, vengeance, etc., for which see these words. to cry encouragement: to shout encouraging words. cry fish: see 5 b. cry mercy: see 1 a, b. to cry smack: to give out the sound of a smack. Cf. also sense 17.
| 1627 W. Sclater Exp. 2 Thess. (1632) 124 He heares not the sweet Busse cry smacke. 1872 Raymond Statist. Mines 324 Where so many voices cry encouragement, it is well that one should speak warning. |
** With prepositions.
(For the constructions in which both words have their ordinary senses, see above.)
14. cry against ―. To raise one's voice against; to utter protests or reproofs against; also fig. of things.
| 1382 Wyclif Deut. xv. 9 Lest he crye aȝens thee to the Lord. 1611 Bible Jonah i. 2 Goe to Nineueh..and cry against it. 1635 Swan Spec. M. vi. §2 (1643) 185 Reason it self doth crie against it. 1850 Tennyson In Mem. xc. 24, I find not yet one lonely thought That cries against my wish for thee. |
15. cry for ―. To beg or call for loudly and imploringly, or with tears; fig. to be in pressing need of, to demand in the name of justice (see above 2 c).
| a 1300 Cursor M. 9610 (Cott.) All þat sco wald for cri or call. 1581 Mulcaster Positions xxxviii. (1887) 159 If ye shew a child an apple, he will crye for it. 1599 Shakes. Hen. V, iv. i. 145 Some swearing, some crying for a Surgean. 1860 T. Martin Horace 96 The toilworn wretch who cries for ease. |
† 16. cry of ―. To hail from, belong to. Obs.
| c 1314 Guy Warw. (A.) 7001 Redi to fiȝtes Wiþ alle þat crie of þat cuntre. |
17. cry on, upon ―: see senses 2, 3. Also (obs.), to call upon in the way of appeal, to appeal to; to exclaim against; to choose by acclamation; to invoke or bring by outcry (fame, honour, hate, etc.) on or upon. Cf. cry shame upon.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 6139 (Gött.) Þan gan þe folk apon him cri, And said ‘do ȝou forth in hey’. c 1400 Destr. Troy 6504 Then criet he full cantly þe knightes vpon. 1532 More Confut. Tindale Wks. 396/1 He cryed vpon them to doe penaunce. 1547–64 Bauldwin Mor. Philos. (Palfr.) 73 b, All their religiones were wicked and abhominable And therefore some of them cried upon them. 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 154 This yere fell a great controversie..about the chosyng of the Maior..the Commons..cryed upon Thomas fitz Thomas. 1601 Shakes. Twel. N. v. i. 62 That very enuy..Cride fame and honor on him. 1606 ― Tr. & Cr. v. v. 35 His mangled Myrmidons..come to him, Crying on Hector. |
*** With adverbs.
18. cry back. a. trans. To call back. Sc.
| 1864 W. Chambers in Athenæum No. 1923. 301/2 Rin and cry back the laird. |
b. intr. Hunting. To return as on a trail; to hark back; fig. to revert to an ancestral type.
19. cry down. a. trans. To proclaim (a thing) as unlawful, to forbid, suppress, or condemn by public proclamation; to decry; publicly to disclaim responsibility for.
| 1457 Sc. Acts Jas. II (1597) §65 That the fute-bal and golfe be vtterly cryed downe, and not to be vsed. 1684 Bunyan Pilgr. ii. (1879) 211 Her Husband first cried her down at the Cross, and then turned her out of his Doors. 1692 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) II. 563 The lord mayor sent his officers to cry downe the faire. 1765 Blackstone Comm. (1774) I. 278 The king may..decry, or cry down, any coin of the kingdom, and make it no longer current. 1827 Hallam Const. Hist. (1876) I. i. 38 Bad money was cried down, with penalties. |
b. To condemn, depreciate, or disparage loudly, vehemently, or publicly.
| 1598 B. Jonson Ev. Man in Hum. i. v, He condemned, and cry'd it downe for the most pyed and ridiculous that ever he saw. 1642 Fuller Holy & Prof. St. ii. xxi. 135 These cry up Drakes fortune herein to cry down his valour. 1742 Fielding J. Andrews i. xvii, A book which the clergy would be certain to cry down. 1888 Rider Haggard Meeson's Will i, Did Meeson's subsidize a newspaper to puff their undertakings, the opposition subsidized two to cry them down. |
c. To put down, overcome, silence, by louder or more vehement crying.
| 1613 Shakes. Hen. VIII, i. i. 137 Ile to the King, And from a mouth of Honor quite cry downe This Ipswich fellowes insolence. a 1628 Preston Saints Daily Exerc. (1629) 103 Our sinnes cry lowder then our prayers, they cry downe our prayers. |
20. cry off. intr. To exclaim that a negotiation is broken off, on the part of the exclaimer; to announce one's withdrawal from a negotiation, treaty, engagement, etc.
| 1775 Sheridan Rivals iii. i, I should never be the man to bid you cry off. 1857 Trollope Three Clerks xxxviii, Would she be the first to cry off from such a bargain? 1890 G. M. Fenn Double Knot I. Prol. iv. 62 He soon cried off on finding that his challenge was taken up. |
21. cry out. To utter loud and (usually) impassioned exclamation; to exclaim. intr. and trans. Of things: To emit a creaking sound.
| 1382 Wyclif Ecclus. I. 18 Thanne crieden out the sonus of Aron. 1483 Cath. Angl. 82 To Cry owte, exclamare. 1535 Coverdale Isa. xii. 6 Crie out, and be glad, thou that dwellest in Sion. 1592 Shakes. Rom. & Jul. iii. iii. 109 Art thou a man? thy forme cries out thou art. 1653 H. Cogan tr. Pinto's Trav. xix. 67 Threatening, if they cryed out never so little, to kill them all. 1781 Archer in Naval Chron. XI. 291 Our poor ship grinding, and crying out at every stroke. 1818 Byron Juan i. ccvii, They will not cry out before they're hurt. 1890 A. Gissing Village Hampden III. iii. 72 He just cried out a good-night..and set off. |
b. Const. against, at, on, upon (persons or things objected to); for (something wanted); † to cry out of, to complain loudly or vehemently of (a matter).
| c 1385 Wyclif Wks. (1880) 157 All cristene men schal crie out on þes deuelis blasphemyes. 1548 Hall Chron. 14 b, All pore people will rayle and crie out upon us. Ibid. 209 b, Which commaundement so vexed..that they cryed out of God. 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 249 Criyng out of the dammages and great hurtes that they had susteyned. 1579 Gosson Sch. Abuse (Arb.) 41 His crueltie was so loudely cryed out on. 1599 Shakes. Hen. V, ii. iii. 29 They say he cried out of Sack. 1630 Bp. W. Bedell in Abp. Ussher's Lett. (1686) 421 He is the..most cried out upon. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 160 A severe Scholler..cries out against their filthinesse. 1653 H. Cogan tr. Pinto's Trav. xv. 48 Crying out for help. a 1680 T. Brooks Wks. (1867) VI. 217 Sometimes they cry out of the malice, plots, envy, and rage of men. 1711 tr. Werenfelsius' Meteors of Stile 194 You cry out Thief upon a Man. 1722 De Foe Plague (1884 Rtldg.) 218 They wou'd cry out of the Cruelty of being confin'd. 1759 Goldsm. Bee Wks. (Globe) 366/2 The world..may cry out at a bankrupt who appears at a ball. 1871 R. H. Hutton Ess. (1877) I. 92 Every living movement of human thought..cries out against it. 1879 C. M. Yonge Cameos Ser. iv. i. 15 The state of the church cried out for a general council. |
† c. To be in child-birth. Cf. shout. Obs.
| 1613 Shakes. Hen. VIII, v. i. 67 What, is she crying out? 1668 Pepys Diary 12 July. 1692–1754 [see crying 2]. |
† d. To sell out by auction. Obs.
| 1701 Lond. Gaz. No. 3748/4 Mr. John Boulte..Pawn⁓broker..gave his Employment, and cried out his Goods. |
e. Colloq. phr. for crying out loud, an exclamation expressing astonishment or impatience. orig. U.S.
| 1924 H. C. Witwer Love & Learn vi. 148 ‘For crying out loud’ butts in Hazel impatiently. 1933 M. Allingham Sweet Danger v. 69 Well for crying out loud!.. That's a nasty scrape. 1941 ‘R. West’ Black Lamb (1942) II. 156 For crying out loud, why did you do it? |
22. cry up. trans. To proclaim (a thing) to be excellent; to endeavour to exalt in public estimation by proclamation or by loud praise; to extol.
| 1593 Drayton Misery Q. Mary Wks. 1753 II. 388 When she up is cry'd, Of all angelic excellence the prime. 1631 T. Powell Tom All Trades 144 When your credit is cryed up to the highest. 1648 W. Jenkyn Blind Guide iv. 88 You cry up Miracles as you cry down the Word. a 1698 Temple (J.), Crying up the pieces of eight. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 125 ¶5 We often hear a poor insipid Paper or Pamphlet cried up. 1792 Burke Corr. (1844) III. 390 They who cry up the French revolution, cry down the party which you and I..belong to. 1874 Helps Soc. Pressure v. 73 Isn't it good to hear Milverton cry up the virtue of athletic sports? |
† b. intr. To raise one's voice, shout. Obs.
| 1684 Goddard Plato's Demon 259 Worthy Patriots, who cry up so much for Liberty and Property. |