sober
v.v. to become serious or calm after being silly or drunk. You can also use it to describe making someone else realize a situation is serious.
v. to become or cause someone to become serious, sensible, or free from the effects of alcohol. Often used with the particle 'up' to indicate a transition from intoxication or lightheartedness to gravity.
The bad news helped him sober up quickly.
The sight of the damaged car served to sober the teenagers after their night of celebration.
While the initial excitement of the merger buoyed stock prices, the subsequent quarterly report served to sober investors who had overlooked the company's significant debt obligations.
Inherited from Middle English sober, from Old French sobre, from Latin sōbrius, from se- (“without”) + ebrius (“intoxicated”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁egʷʰ- (“drink”). In the sense "not drunk," displaced native undrunken, from Old English undruncen.
Often functions as a phrasal verb ('sober up'). When used transitively to mean 'making someone serious', it does not always require the particle.
He sobered from the newsHe sobered up after the newsWhen describing a change in mood or state, the verb usually requires the particle 'up' to sound natural.