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Origin and history of sob

sob(v.)

c. 1200, sobben, "to cry or sigh heavily with short breaths and a sudden heaving of the chest," in sorrow or joy, probably of imitative origin and related to Old English seofian "to lament," Old High German sufan "to draw breath," West Frisian sobje "to suck." Related: Sobbed; sobbing.

sob(n.)

late 14c., sobbe, "convulsive heaving of the breast," from sob (v.). Sob story "tale of grief" is from 1911. Sob sister "female journalist who writes sentimental stories or advice columns" is attested from 1912.

also from late 14c.

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Trends of sob

adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

More to explore

sibling
German Sippe, Gothic sibja "kin, kindred"), from PIE *s(w)e-bh(o)- (source also of Old Church Slavonic sobistvo, Russian sob...
this
Old English þis, neuter demonstrative pronoun and adjective (masc. þes, fem. þeos), probably from a North Sea Germanic pronoun *tha-si-, formed by combining the base *þa- (see that) with -s, which is probably identical with Old English se "the" (representing here "a specific thin
sith
a once-common, now obsolete word for "since," Middle English sitthen (conj.), sitthe (prep., adv.), reduced from Old English siððan (Mercian seoððan, Northubrian seoðan) "then, thereupon; continuously, during which; seeing that," a comparative adverb from *sið þon "subsequent to
weeping
late Old English, present-participle adjective from weep (v.). Used of various trees whose branches arch downward and suggest drooping, such as weeping elm (c. 1600); weeping cherry (1824). Weeping willow (French saule pleureur, German trauerweide) is recorded from 1731. The tree
cry
mid-13c., "yell (something) out, utter" (transitive); c. 1300, "beg, implore; speak earnestly and loudly; advertise by calling out," from Old French crier, from Vulgar Latin *critare, from Latin quiritare "to wail, shriek" (source of Italian gridare, Old Spanish cridar, Spanish a
weep
Old English wepan "shed tears, cry; bewail, mourn over; complain" (class VII strong verb; past tense weop, past participle wopen), from Proto-Germanic *wopjan (source also of Old Norse op, Old High German wuof "shout, shouting, crying," Old Saxon wopian, Gothic wopjan "to shout,
breath
Old English bræð "odor, scent, stink, exhalation, vapor" (the Old English word for "air exhaled from the lungs" was æðm), from Proto-Germanic *bræthaz "smell, exhalation" (source also of Old High German bradam, German Brodem "breath, steam"), perhaps [Watkins] from a PIE root *gw
mother
"female parent, a woman in relation to her child," Middle English moder, from Old English modor, from Proto-Germanic *mōdēr (source also of Old Saxon modar, Old Frisian moder, Old Norse moðir, Danish moder, Dutch moeder, Old High German muoter, German Mutter), from PIE *mater- "m
son
"male child in relation to either or both parents," Old English sunu "son, male child," also broadly "male descendant;" also "second person of the Trinity," from Proto-Germanic *sunus (source also of Old Saxon and Old Frisian sunu, Old Norse sonr, Danish søn, Swedish son, Middle
grief
early 13c., "hardship, suffering, pain, bodily affliction," from Old French grief "wrong, grievance, injustice, misfortune, calamity" (13c.), from grever "afflict, burden, oppress," from Latin gravare "make heavy; cause grief," from gravis "weighty" (from PIE root *gwere- (1) "he

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