Link Centre Dictionary

sleep

UK/sliːp/ US/slɪjp/ very common informal slang
verb (2) noun (4)

verb

1.
2.

be able to accommodate for sleeping

  • “This tent sleeps six people”

noun

1.

a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended

  • “he didn”
  • “;”
Synonyms
2.

a torpid state resembling sleep

3.

a period of time spent sleeping

  • “he felt better after a little sleep”
  • “there wasn”
Synonyms
4.

euphemisms for death (based on an analogy between lying in a bed and in a tomb)

  • “she was laid to rest beside her husband”
  • “they had to put their family pet to sleep”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English slepen, from Anglian Old English slēpan (West Saxon Old English slǣpan), from Proto-West Germanic *slāpan, from Proto-Germanic *slēpaną (“to sleep”). Cognates Cognate with North Frisian sleepe, sliap, sliip, släipe (“to sleep”), Saterland Frisian släipe (“to sleep”), West Frisian sliepe (“to sleep”), Alemannic German schlaaffe, schlaafä, schlafe, schloafe, schloafen, schlofe, schlàfu (“to sleep”), Bavarian schlofn, schlåfn, sghlofn (“to sleep”), Central Franconian schlofe (“to sleep”), Cimbrian slaafan, slafan, slavan (“to sleep”), Dutch and Low German slapen (“to sleep”), German schlafen (“to sleep”), Limburgish schloëpe, slaope (“to sleep”), Luxembourgish schlofen (“to sleep”), Mòcheno schloven (“to sleep”), Vilamovian šłȫfa, śłöfa (“to sleep”), Yiddish שלאָפֿן (shlofn, “to sleep”), Crimean Gothic schlipen (“to sleep”), Gothic 𐍃𐌻𐌴𐍀𐌰𐌽 (slēpan, “to sleep”).

Phrases

  • ageless sleep
  • beauty sleep
  • big sleep
  • biphasic sleep
  • broken sleep
  • cold sleep
  • cry oneself to sleep
  • does Dolly Parton sleep on her back
  • how can you sleep at night
  • how do you sleep at night
  • non-24-hour sleep-wake disorder
  • sleep a wink

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See also

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.