Kenneth G. Wilson (1923–). The Columbia Guide to Standard American English. 1993.
weep, cry, sob (vv.)
All mean “to shed tears,” with cry (which has other meanings as well) usually being the most frequent and general, with weep meaning particularly “to express grief or sorrow or even joy by shedding tears,” and with sob meaning especially “to weep aloud, with noticeable catching of breath.” Cry and sob are both regular weak verbs, but weep’s past tense and past participle are both wept: The children wept uncontrollably that night. Weeped is Nonstandard at best, but more probably Substandard.
