in tears

in tears — idiom

1. In a state where tears are flowing from your eyes, usually because you feel very

1.慣用語A2
釋義

In a state where tears are flowing from your eyes, usually because you feel very sad, upset, or extremely emotional about something.

例句

Théo was in tears after learning that his pet hamster had died.

state: describes being actively crying

Wren found her little sister in tears over a broken doll and tried to comfort her.

pattern: find + someone + in tears

同義詞
  • weeping

    More formal and literary; describes the action of crying rather than the state.

  • sobbing

    Focuses on loud, heavy crying with audible breaths; stronger and more intense than 'in tears'.

  • crying

    The most general term for producing tears; can describe both the state and the action.

反義詞
  • dry-eyed

    Describes someone who is not crying or able to cry in an emotional situation.

文法句型

be + in tears

find + someone + in tears

leave + (somewhere) + in tears

用法筆記

Describes a visible state where tears are actually on the face, not just an internal feeling of sadness. Can describe both sad (grief, pain) and happy (joy, relief) emotions when paired with 'of'. Do not use for physical eye irritation such as from onions or smoke — use 'watering' instead.

常見錯誤

❌My eyes were in tears because I cut onions.
✅My eyes were watering because I cut onions.
💡'in tears' is for emotional crying, not physical irritation.
❌I felt in tears all day.
✅I was on the verge of tears all day.
💡'in tears' describes the visible state of actually crying, not the feeling of nearly crying.