▪ I. sleep, n.
(sliːp)
Forms: α. 1 slæp, 1, 3–4 (6 Sc.) slep (3 sclep), 1, 4– sleep; 1, 3 dat. slæpe 3 dat., 6 sleape, 1–3 dat., 4–6 slepe (5 sclepe, sleppe), 5–7 sleepe; 6 Sc. sleip(e. β. 1, 3 slap, 2, 4 slape, 4 slope.
[OE. slǽp (sláp), slép, = OFris. slêp (WFris. sliep, NFris. slîp), MDu. slaep (Du. slaap), OS. (MLG. and LG.) slâp, OHG. slâf, sclâf, sclâph (MHG. slâf, G. schlaf), Goth. slēps (wanting in Scandinavian), the n. corresponding to sleep v.
On the relation of the rare OE. sláp to the usual slǽp see the note to the verb. The form is also scantily represented in ME., the following being the more important examples of it (cf. also the rimes in King & Hermit 196, 286):—
a 1000 in Englische Stud. IX. 40 Slape, somno. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 77 [He] mineȝeð us..bidden þat he..weche us of ure heuie slape. c 1200 Ormin 1903 Crist ras upp off dæþess slap. a 1300 Cursor M. 7201 Sampson wakkend of his slape. c 1350 Will. Palerne 1995 My lady lis ȝit a-slape. a 1400 Bone Flor. (R.) 1632 When he wyste they were on slope, To Betres throte can he grope.]
1. a. The unconscious state or condition regularly and naturally assumed by man and animals, during which the activity of the nervous system is almost or entirely suspended, and recuperation of its powers takes place; slumber, repose.
Also, a similar state artificially induced, as hypnotic (or magnetic) sleep. For dead sleep see dead a. 2 b. The word is further applied to the more inert condition of certain animals during hibernation.
| c 825 Vesp. Ps. cxxvi. 2 Ðonne seleð scyldum his slep. c 897 K. ælfred tr. Gregory's Past. C. xxxix. 283 Sio slæwð ᵹiett slæp on ðone monnan. c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke v. 9 Slep..ymb-salde hine & Alle ðaðe mið him weron. c 1000 ælfric Gen. xv. 12 On æfnunge befeoll slæp on Abram. c 1205 Lay. 15707 Þenne ich wæs on bedde iswaued mid soft mine slepen. 12.. Prayer our Lady 9 in O.E. Misc. 192 Slep me hað mi lif forstole richt half oðer more. c 1369 Chaucer Dethe Blaunche 137 Goo..to Morpheus, Thou knowist hym well, the god of slepe. 1430–40 Lydg. Bochas i. viii. (1544) 15 She gaue him milke, y⊇ slepe fell in his hede. 1513 Douglas æneid viii. vii. 84 The plesand naturall slep..can he tak. 1596 Spenser F.Q. vi. viii. 38 Sleepe they sayd would make her battill better. 1617 Moryson Itin. ii. 46 My selfe being at all howers (but time of sleepe) admitted into his chamber. 1658 Whole Duty of Man ix. §i. 75 Sleep comes as a medicine to weariness, as a repairer of decay. 1742 Gray Propertius ii. 17 If sinking into Sleep she seem to close Her languid Lids. 1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) II. 139 Sleep is,..to some, a very agreeable period of their existence. 1821 Byron Sardan. iv. i, If Sleep shows such things, what may not death disclose? 1884 Day Fishes Gt. Brit. I. p. xix, Does sleep or a periodical season of repose for the organs of the senses, ever visit fish? |
| transf. 1818 Shelley Rosalind & H. 1207 Then a dead sleep fell on my mind. 1876 Encycl. Brit. IV. 716 Among other notions which they had imbibed, was that of a sleep of the soul after death. |
b. Freq. in prepositional phrases, as
to sleep,
in sleep or
† on sleep,
out of sleep or
† of, sleep. (
Cf. also
asleep adv.)
In some of the phrases with
to it is not always clear whether the noun or verb is intended.
| (a) Beowulf 1251 Siᵹon þa to slæpe. a 1300 Cursor M. 20496 All þar fell to slepe. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 271 The nyht, whan he was leid to slepe. c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 3347 When þai etyn and to slepe ȝode. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 5 The Sailers, who..commonly goe to sleepe..in their wet clothes. 1764 Reid Inquiry v. §7 A child that has a good musical ear, may be put to sleep..by the modulation of musical sounds. 1837 Dickens Pickw. iv, Damn that boy, he's gone to sleep again. 1885 Mrs. E. Lynn Linton C. Kirkland II. ii. 68 You..went happily to sleep. |
| transf. c 1440 Pallad. on Husb. xiii. 42 His fruyt in picched pottis me may kepe, In drosse of grape or applis leid to slepe. |
| (b) c 897 K. ælfred tr. Gregory's Past. C. xxviii. 195 Ðonne hnappað he oð he wierð on fæstum slæpe. c 1200 Ormin 8352 He comm till himm o nahht & fand himm þanne o slæpe. a 1300 Cursor M. 2974 Bot godd on night com to þe king, In slepe. c 1450 Merlin i. 10 She fill on slepe on her bedde. 1566 Pasquine in Traunce 62 To wake the waspes of Germaine, that were on sleepe. 1640 Plymouth Col. Rec. (1855) I. 156 In the morneing he found them on sleep by the fyer. 1651 Hobbes Leviath. ii. xxvii. 156 Dreams be naturally but the fancies remaining in sleep. 1780 Mirror No. 73, A particular train of thought impressed upon us in sleep. 1819 Scott Ivanhoe xxix, The bold and buoyant spirit which forsakes them not even in sleep! |
| (c) a 900 Cynewulf Elene 75 He of slæpe onbræᵹd. c 960 Rule St. Benet (Schröer) 2 Nu is tima, þæt we of slepe arisan. c 1200 Ormin 3136 Josæp..ras himm upp off slæpe anan. 1310 St. Brendan (Bälz) 457 Þe fisches sturt up vor hor song, as hi awoke of slepe. 1388 Wyclif Gen. xxviii. 16 Whanne Jacob hadde wakyd of sleep. 1526 Tindale John xi. 11, I goo to wake him out of slepe. |
c. Personified (after L.
Somnus,
Gr. Ὕπνος).
| 1390 Gower Conf. II. 101 Sche bad Yris..To Slepes hous that sche schal wende, And bidde him [etc.]. c 1460 Sir R. Ros La Belle Dame 2 Halfe in a dreme..The golden slepe me wrapt vndir his wyng. 1563 Mirr. Mag. Q iv, By him lay heavy slepe, the cosin of death. 1651 Davenant Gondibert i. vi. 80 Kind Sleep, Nights welcome Officer. 1718 Pope Iliad xiv. 265 The cave of Death's half-brother, Sleep. 1842 Tennyson Gardener's Dau. 263 Night..in her bosom bore the baby, Sleep. |
d. The effects or signs of sleep. Also
spec., the solid substance found in the corners of the eyes and along the edges of the eyelids after sleep.
| 1864 Lowell Fireside Trav. 103 A drowsy maid with the sleep scarce brushed out of her hair. 1905 in Eng. Dial. Dict. 1922 ‘R. West’ Judge i. iv. 195 Richard was sitting in front of the fire, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. 1951 L. MacNeice tr. Goethe's Faust 241 Children, you have scarcely scrubbed your eyes of sleep—and bored already? 1955 J. D. Salinger in New Yorker 29 Jan. 27/1 He began to massage the side of his face.., removing..a bit of sleep from one eye. 1973 P. White Eye of Storm vii. 300 The girl stood..washing the sleep out of her eyes. |
e. to lose sleep over, etc.: see
lose v.
1 3 b.
2. a. With possessive pronouns,
freq. in adverbial phrases, as
in his sleep, etc. Also, in hyperbolic phrase
could do something in one's sleep and
varr.| c 825 Vesp. Ps. lxxv. 5 Slypton slep heara & nowiht ᵹemoettun. c 1100 Canterb. Ps. lxxv. 6 Hie slepon sleep vel swefne hiræ. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 328 Him þoȝte þe ymage in is slep tolde him is chance. c 1386 Chaucer Nun's Pr. T. 188–9 This man out of his sleepe for feere abrayde; But whan that he was wakened of his sleepe [etc.]. c 1400 Love Bonavent. Mirr. (1908) 64 The aungel of god apered to Joseph in his slepe. c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 6259 When he of his slepe wakynd. 1573 G. Harvey Letter-bk. (Camden) 131 In my very sleepe, I was adrempt in this wise. 1651 Hobbes Leviath. i. iii. 9 To hinder and break our sleep. 1667 Milton P.L. v. 3 His sleep Was Aerie light, from pure digestion bred. 1712 M. Henry Daily Comm. w. God (1822) 372 That will break a worldly man's heart, which will not break a godly man's sleep. 1820 Keats Eve St. Agnes xxxiv, She still beheld, Now wide awake, the vision of her sleep. 1852 M. Arnold Tristr. & Iseult 59 Hark! he mutters in his sleep. 1953 E. Coxhead Midlanders viii. 187 There's no difficulty. We could make them in our sleep. 1970 J. Braine Stay with me till Morning i. 9 His job didn't claim much of his energy. He could, as they say, do it in his sleep. |
† b. In
pl., of more than one person.
Obs.| 1586 J. Hooker Hist. Irel. in Holinshed II. 160/1 Taking aduantage of the time, when men were wearie and in their sleepes. 1603 Dekker Wonderfull Yeare Wks. (Grosart) I. 105 All his famiy destroied in their sleepes by the mercilesse fire. 1653 Holcroft Procopius, Gothic Wars i. 25 The people of Rome..being put also to guard the walls, and want their sleepes. |
† c. With allusion to sleeping together.
Obs.—1| 1612 Webster White Devil ii. i, Fare you well, Our sleeps are sever'd. |
3. a. A period or occasion of slumber. Also, in
phr. to have or get one's sleep out, to sleep until one wakes naturally.
| c 1200 Ormin 3152 And tær he ras upp off þatt slæp. Ibid. 7043 Cristess resste & Cristess ro & Cristess swete slæpess. 1340 Ayenb. 31 Hi hedden leuere lyese vour messen þanne..ane slep. c 1374 Chaucer Boeth. ii. metr. 5. 50 Þei slepen holesom slepes vpon þe gras. a 1400–50 Alexander 375 Qwen..folke was on þaire firste slepe. 1535 Coverdale Ps. lxxxix. 5 They are euen as a slepe, and fade awaye sodenly like the grasse. 1579 W. Wilkinson Confut. Fam. Love 17 b, All your fantasies are but as..the sleepes of a sick man. a 1619 Daniel Coll. Hist. Eng (1626) 56 His owne sleepes..are saide to haue beene very tumultuous, and full of affrightments. 1685 C. Gardiner Let. in M. M. Verney Mem. (1899) IV. ix. 341 Your grandsons shall have their sleep out beefore they goe. 1692 Prior To Charles Montague Wks. (Bell) I. 46 So, whilst in feverish sleeps we think We taste what waking we desire. 1706 E. Ward Wooden World Diss. (1708) 69 His Sleeps are moderate enough, just to suffice Nature. 1764 London Mag. 417/1 She fell into a sleep which held four days. 1863 W. C. Baldwin Afr. Hunting iii. 91 Towards morning I got a good sleep. 1899 Allbutt's Syst. Med. VIII. 412 Between the sleeps the general tendency is to quiet indifference. 1911 F. H. Burnett Secret Garden xvii. 183 ‘You must go back and get your sleep out,’ she said. 1930 A. Bennett Imperial Palace lvii. 434 She had told him to call her. He had refused; she must have her sleep out. |
b. As an indication or division of time.
| 1131 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 1131, On an Mone⁓niht æt þe forme slæp. c 1500 Melusine 186 They departed about the first slepe. 1670 N. Carteret in S. Carolina Hist. Soc. Coll. (1897) V. 166 The Caseeka..was within one sleep of us. 1702 C. Mather Magn. Christi iii. App. (1852) 559 Their [the Indians'] division of time is by sleeps, and moons, and winters. 1893 Arena Mar 495 Time is divided by them into ‘sleeps’, and in the same way they [the Indians] estimate distances and journeys. 1896 C. Whitney On Snow-Shoes to Barren Grounds 182 The one ‘sleep’ did not bring us up to the caribou, but it took us north to the lodge of another Indian. 1919 Cody & Cooper Memories of Buffalo Bill 312 It was many sleeps away. 1953 D. Cushman Stay away, Joe 53 From three-four sleeps came riders to the tepee of our father. |
c. fig. A prison term,
usu. comparatively short.
slang (
orig. U.S.).
| 1911 D. Lowrie My Life in Prison vi. 63 A year sentence is known as a ‘sleep’. 1931 ‘D. Stiff’ Milk & Honey Route vi. 65 Any time you want to retreat to some such place for a short or long rest or ‘sleep’, just go to the social worker displaying the proper symptoms. 1938 J. Phelan Lifer xix. 202, I wasn't interested myself [in escaping]. Three years was nothing—just a sleep, as you chaps put it. 1971 D. Bagley Freedom Trap iii. 59 In prison jargon, a ‘sleep’ is a sentence from six months to two years; a ‘cut’ is from two to four years, and a ‘stretch’ is anything over four years. |
4. fig. a. The repose of death. (Usually with qualifying terms or phrases.)
to put to sleep, to kill,
esp. painlessly; also
fig.| a 900 Cynewulf Crist 890 Byman..hatað hy upp astandan sneome of slæpe þy fæstan. c 1200 Ormin 19254 He ras..Off dæþess slæp to life. a 1400 Minor Poems fr. Vernon MS. xxiii. 1130 Þe geaunt..Þat wel a-wakeþ þe slepynge Of sleep of deþ so long. 1567 Gude & Godlie Ball. (S.T.S.) 89 Help me..That suddand sleip of deide do me na teine. 1579 Spenser Sheph. Cal. Aug. 170 Till my last sleepe Doe close mine eyes. 1810 Scott Lady of L. i. xxxi, Sleep the sleep that knows not breaking! 1860 Pusey Min. Proph. 378 They slept the sleep from which they shall not awake until the Judgment Day. 1942 R. Godden Breakfast with Nikolides v. 118, I want you simply to give him an injection and put him to sleep. I will muzzle him. 1966 K. A. Saddler Gilt Edge ii. 37, I had to have the Allard [sc. a car] put to sleep... She started coughing up oil... I couldn't bear to see her in agony. 1967 A. Lewin Unaltered Cat ii. vi. 134 Her cousin's Siamese cat..had..a litter of four adorable seal⁓point kittens. Ethel's husband was for putting them to sleep, but Ethel wouldn't hear of it. 1970 Women's Household July 10/1 She had started to suffer, so the humane thing to do was to put her to sleep. 1975 tr. Melchior's Sleeper Agent (1976) iii. vii. 154 The Führer's Alsatian dog, Blondi..had been ordered put to sleep. Dr. Haase had given her poison. |
b. A state of inactivity or of sluggishness (in persons or things).
| Beowulf 1742 He þæt wyrse ne con..; bið se slæp to fæst. c 897 K. ælfred tr. Gregory's Past. C. lvi. 431 Be ðæs modes slæpe wæs ær awriten on ðære ilcan Salomonnes bec. c 1200 Ormin 3148 Þatt wass þurrh wanntrowwþess slæp. a 1225 Ancr. R. 272 Þis nis buten ine slepe of ȝemeleaste & of slouhðe. 1710 Norris Chr. Prud. v. 250 The Agreement and Proportion that is between Sleep and Sin,..so that Sin is a kind of Spiritual Sleep. 1718 Freethinker No. 83, Many..begin to slumber in their Manhood; and drop into a sound Sleep in their Age. 1781 Cowper Expostulation 637 Ere nature rose from her eternal sleep. a 1822 Shelley With a Guitar 46 While on the steep The woods were in their winter sleep. 1874 H. R. Reynolds John Bapt. iv. §5. 259 Men who had laid their ethical sense to sleep. 1889 A. Sergeant Esther Denison I. v. 51 He had put his doubts to sleep. |
c. The condition of being quiet and peaceful; complete absence of noise or stir.
| 1807 Wordsw. Song Brougham Castle 164 The sleep that is among the lonely hills. 1821–2 Shelley Chas. I, ii. 239 The innocent sleep Of templed cities. 1872 Black Adv. Phaeton xix. 274 The deep sleep of the landscape. |
5. a. Bot. A condition assumed by many plants,
esp. during the night, marked by the closing of petals or leaves.
After L.
Somnus Plantarum, the title of a pamphlet published by P. Bremer in 1755.
| 1757 J. Hill Sleep of Plants 30 What is called the sleep of plants is the effect of the absence of light alone. 1796 Withering Brit. Pl. (ed. 3) II. 419 This species is a notable instance of what is called the Sleep of Plants—for every night the leaves approach in pairs. 1842 Penny Cycl. XXII. 129/2 During sleep the leaves of the sensitive-plant lose their peculiar sensibility. 1877 Darwin More Lett. (1903) II. 414 The cotyledons of Cassia go to sleep, and are sensitive to a touch. |
b. A state of numbness in a limb, produced by prolonged pressure upon it. (
Cf. asleep adv. 4.)
| 1859 Princess Royal Let. 12 Dec. in R. Fulford Dearest Child (1964) 212 Wegner..pinches his arm to see whether he feels it... He feels just a little but not much, like a part that is gone to sleep. 1882 Quain's Dict. Med. II. 1649 There is numbness in the hands and forearms, with a sensation of ‘going to sleep’ in the fingers. 1893 A. S. Eccles Sciatica 18 In the cases of external pressure..the patients noticed that the limb had ‘gone to sleep’. |
6. attrib. and
Comb. a. Attrib., as
sleep deprivation,
sleep-disturbance,
sleep-land, etc. Also
sleep-like adj.| 1966 I. Jefferies House-Surgeon xii. 230 Those who are still not weakened sufficiently are eroded remorselessly by *sleep-deprivation. 1980 E. Behr Getting Even i. 18 We tried another tactic... Truth drugs... Even some subtle sleep deprivation. Inconclusive. |
| 1834 Good's Study Med. (ed. 4) III. 49 Fatuity, mania, melancholy and *sleep-disturbance. |
| 1874 L. Carr Judith Gwynne I. v. 149 Then her wandering mind went off into *sleepland. |
| 1826 Kirby & Sp. Entomol. IV. xliii. 193 At night they regularly muster in a state of *sleep-like silence. |
| 1887 Morris Odyss. xi. 331 And now anigh it doth draw To the *sleep-tide. |
| 1889 Browning Asolando, At the midnight, in the silence of the *sleep-time. |
b. With agent-nouns,
vbl. ns., and
pres. pples., as
sleep-bringer,
sleep-dispeller;
sleep-bringing,
sleep-causing,
sleep-compelling,
sleep-desiring,
sleep-producing, etc.
| 1591 Sylvester Du Bartas i. iv. 718 *Sleep-bringer, Pilgrim's guide, Peace-loving Queen. |
| 1616 W. Browne Brit. Past. ii. iii, *Sleepe-bringing poppy. |
| 1611 Cotgr., Somnifique, *sleepe-causing. |
| 1762 Foote Orator i. Wks. 1799 I. 205 Where the *sleep-compelling power will be experimentally demonstrated. 1874 L. Carr J. Gwynne I. i. 15 Surrounded..by drowsy, sleep-compelling influences. |
| 1878 B. Taylor Deukalion i. iv. 34 Dull gleams from *sleep-desiring eyes. |
| 1860 G. H. K. Vac. Tour 116 Tub, *sleep-dispeller, welcome! |
| 1816 H. G. Knight Ilderim 407 Onward the *sleep-disturbing triumph roll'd. |
| 1847 Helps Friends in C. I. vi. 88 The *sleep-inducing weavings and unweavings of political combination. |
| 1748 Thomson Castle Indol. i. lviii, Where purls the brook with *sleep-inviting sound. |
| 1611 Cotgr., Soporifere, soporiferous, *sleepe-procuring. |
| 1844 E. A. Poe in Godey's Lady's Bk. Apr. 177/2 This rapport extended beyond the limits of the simple *sleep-producing power... At the first attempt..the mesmerist entirely failed. 1907 W. James in Amer. Mag. Nov. 64/2 The best sleep-producing agent which his practice had revealed to him was prayer. |
| 1625 K. Long tr. Barclay's Argenis iv. xviii. 306 *Sleepe⁓provoking poppy and soft paces. |
| 1845 James Smuggler III. 37 Any *sleep-resisting powers of the human frame. |
| 1748 Thomson Castle Indol. i. iii, *Sleep-soothing groves, and quiet lawns between. |
c. With past
pples., as
sleep-bedeafened,
sleep-bound,
sleep-created,
sleep-dazed,
sleep-dewed,
sleep-drowned,
sleep-twisted, etc.; also with
ppl. adjs., as
sleep-drunk.
| 1605 P. Woodhouse The Flea (1877) 11 The glut'nous Wolfe; and the sleep-fatted Beare. 1605 Sylvester Du Bartas ii. iii. i. Vocation 563 Blew Gladiol's juyce, Where⁓with her sleep-swoln heavy lids she glews. 1631 Quarles Samson Wks. (Grosart) II. 146/1 Whose softer language, by degrees, did wake His father's sleepe-bedeafned eares. 1648 J. Beaumont Psyche vi. ccxlii, To break her sleep-inthralled Spouse's chains. 1792 Cumberland Calvary (1803) II. 57 'Twas the voice As of a spirit..sleep-created in the troubled ear Of conscience. 1820 Shelley Prometh. Unb. i. 12 Three thousand years of sleep-unsheltered hours. 1839–48 Bailey Festus viii. 82 The recovering breath of earth, sleep-drowned. 1841 J. G. Whittier in Knickerbocker May 369 Bend o'er us now, as over them, And set our sleep-bound spirits free. 1889 Cent. Dict., Sleep-drunk. 1894 H. Nisbet Bush Girl's Rom. 148 While his sleep-filled eyes looked on..the morning. 1938 E. Bowen Death of Heart iii. v. 417 He..saw in a sleep⁓bound way how specious wisdom was. 1951 Koestler Age of Longing i. iii. 41 Sleep-drunk and frightened, Hydie begins to cry. 1954 ― Invisible Writing iv. xxxvii. 394 Sleep-dazed, he is unable to decide which of the two hostile dictators is reaching out for him this time. 1960 T. Hughes Lupercal 21 Our lantern's little orange flare Made a round mask of our each sleep-dazed face. 1960 S. Plath Colossus 39 Sleep-twisted sheets. |
7. Special combs.:
sleep apnœa, apnœa occurring in sleep;
sleep-awake adj., in a state between sleeping and waking (
nonce-word);
sleep-coat, a knee-length front-fastening night-shirt or dressing-gown;
sleep disease, the sleeping sickness of Africa;
sleep-drink [
cf. Du. slaapdrank, G.
schlaftrunk], a portion of liquor taken just before bed-time; also
fig.;
sleep-learn a., pertaining to sleep-learning;
sleep-learning,
-teaching vbl. ns., learning, teaching, during sleep,
esp. by exposure to radio, tape-recordings, etc. (
cf. hypnopædia);
sleep movement Bot., a movement of a part of a plant,
esp. a leaf, that occurs each nightfall and, in reverse, each daybreak;
sleep-palsy,
-paralysis, paralysis caused by pressure on a nerve during sleep;
† sleeprife a., bringing sleep, soporiferous;
sleep-shorts, shorts as an item of nightwear;
sleep-sick a., excessively given to sleep;
sleep sofa U.S., a sofa which may be used as a bed;
sleep-stour Sc. (
lit. sleep-dust), signs of sleep;
sleep-stuff, an opiate;
sleep-talk v. intr., to speak (as) during sleep;
sleep-talker, one who speaks during sleep;
sleep-talking, speaking during sleep;
sleep-teaching vbl. n.: see
sleep-learning vbl. n. above;
sleep-thorn [
tr. ON. svefnþorn], in Scandinavian legend, a thorn imagined as inducing sleep;
sleep-trap, a church-pew readily inducing sleep (
nonce-word);
sleep-waker, a mesmerized or hypnotized person;
sleep-waking, a mesmeric or hypnotic state;
† sleepward adv. (see
quot.);
sleep-wear, night wear.
| 1976 National Observer (U.S.) 18 Dec. 16/4 *Sleep apnea has three forms: central apnea [etc.]. 1980 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 29 Mar. 895/2 Sleep apnoea was defined as cessation of airflow at the nose and mouth lasting for at least 10 seconds. |
| 1614 Sylvester Bethulia's Rescue vi. 77 For (*sleep-awake, blinde-seeing) while hee plyes T'untrusse his Points, them (fumbling) faster tyes. |
| 1948 Sun (Baltimore) 11 Feb. 3/5 (Advt.), Rayon knit *sleep-coats... What young, gay, pretty and practical sleepers! 1966 Punch 23 Feb. 290/2 The nearest Hardy Amies equivalent is a..short-sleeved garment called a ‘sleep-coat’, designed for warm climates and centrally heated homes... It is a loose negligé, fastening with a sash. 1976 National Observer (U.S.) 6 Nov. 21 (Advt.), Sleepcoats for cool knights. |
| 1897 M. Kingsley W. Africa 401 Among these are the smallpox, and the *sleep disease. |
| a 1700 Shields Faithf. Contendings (1780) 308 That *sleep-drink of the Antichristian intoxicating toleration was then brewed in hell. 1861 Thackeray Four Georges i, Every evening they shall have their beer, and at night their sleep-drink. |
| 1968 Punch 4 Dec. 804/2 Two new ‘*sleep-learn’ devices. 1972 D. Lees Zodiac 151 By using an adaptation of the sleep-learn technique we can turn you into anything we want. |
| 1953 M. L. Coyne in Jrnl. Exper. Psychol. (1956) LI. 97/1 (heading) Some problems and parameters of *sleep learning. 1966 Listener 8 Dec. 852/3 Equally dangerous might be so-called ‘sleep-learning’ courses which try to teach you something special, like a new language, while you sleep. 1972 J. Gores Dead Skip (1973) iii. 18 Through his mind, like a sleep-learning tape, reeled Bart's words. |
| 1880 C. & F. Darwin Movem. Pl. 262 The periodical movements of leaves thus provided have generally been amplified into so-called *sleep-movements. 1906, etc. [see nyctinastic a.]. 1965 Bell & Coombe tr. Strasburger's Textbk. Bot. 391 Mimosa also shows sleep movements, and at nightfall appears almost as if stimulated by mechanical shock. |
| 1896 Allbutt's Syst. Med. I. 367 The commonest types of paralysis from injury to nerves are *sleep palsy, crutch palsy [etc.]. |
| 1899 Ibid. VI. 659 Hence it is a common form of *sleep paralysis. |
| 1513 Douglas æneid iv. ix. 28 Strynkland to hym the wak hony sweit, And *sleipryfe chesbow seid. |
| 1964 Women's Wear Daily 30 Nov. 50 A pair of *sleepshorts in all sleepwear colors to be sold separately, worn with anything the consumer wishes. 1976 National Observer (U.S.) 29 May 2/6 (Advt.), Classic travel shave coat & matching sleep shorts. |
| 1591 Sylvester Du Bartas i. vii. 129 Thou rather sleep'st, thy self, When thou did'st forge thee such a *sleep-sick Elf. |
| 1973 Washington Post 13 Jan. a13/3 (Advt.), Elegant traditional sleeper. Refined traditional *sleep sofa from Waynline. |
| 1888 Buchanan Heir of Linne viii, I see the *sleep-stour in his eyes already. |
| 1880 Browning Dram. Idylls, Clive 77 Let alone that filthy *sleep-stuff. |
| 1960 S. Plath Colossus 48 The *sleep-talking virgin. 1980 Times Lit. Suppl. 23 May 578/5 She has a tendency to over⁓point,..and I can feel death around too, very little hope or heart—‘although I admit I desire’, she intones, sleep⁓talking. |
| 1794 *Sleep talker [see sleep-walker]. 1972 R. Adams Watership Down x. 44 His voice sank and became that of a sleep-talker. 1981 Maledicta V. 287 Each sleeptalker was asked..a series of some 25 questions and sub-questions about his/her verbalizations. |
| 1829 Good's Study Med. (ed. 3) IV. 173 marg., Hence *sleep-talking, sleep-walking, or somnambulism. 1899 [see somniloquy s.v. somniloquacious a.]. 1939 Joyce Finnegans Wake 459 She's a fright, poor old dutch, in her sleeptalking. 1981 Maledicta V. 286 There has always existed the phenomenon of somniloquy, commonly known as sleeptalking. |
| 1932 *Sleep-teaching [see hypnopædia]. 1957 A. Huxley Let. 12 Dec. (1969) 837 A dictator..could, by the use of drugs, sleep-teaching, hypnosis, subliminal projection..establish a high degree of control over his subjects. 1970 Times 19 Sept. 13 In Russia more than 180 educational institutes..are now fully equipped for sleepteaching. |
| 1889 R. B. Anderson Rydberg's Teut. Mythol. 164 Castles, where goddesses pricked by *sleep-thorns are slumbering. |
| 1895 Daily Telegr. 9 Aug. 5/3 These *sleep-traps were in time superseded by high-backed pews. |
| 1840 *Sleep-waker [see mesmerize v. b]. 1844 E. A. Poe in Columbian Mag. Aug. 70/2 As the sleep-waker pronounced these latter words..I observed upon his countenance a singular expression. 1884 19th Cent. May 807 The sleep-waker will continue to listen and reply. |
| 1840 C. H. Townshend Facts Mesmerism ii. i. 47 Mesmeric Somnambulism, or, more properly, *Sleepwaking. 1886 Myers Phantasms of Living I. Introd. p. xlii, Induced somnambulism or the sleep-waking state. |
| 1562 W. Bullein Bulwarke, Sickmen & Med. 55 b, Sometime medicen is giuen to *slepe⁓warde, or before slepe. |
| 1935 A. P. Herbert What a Word! iv. 115, I have been implored by many to attack..‘*sleep-wear’, and ‘swim-wear’. 1964 [see sleep-shorts above]. 1979 N. Hynd False Flags xxiv. 213 You travel light... Just..some sleepwear. |
▸
sleep hygiene n. the maintenance of healthy and regular sleeping patterns.
| 1899 Daily Herald (Delphos, Ohio) 6 June 3/5 *Sleep hygiene: A sufficiency of rest repairs and strengthens; too much rest weakens and makes soft. 1982 Neurobiol. of Aging 3 321 Experimental strategies for achieving a rational sleep hygiene are discussed. 1996 Homemaker's Mag. (Toronto) Mar. 25/1 Dr. Victor Hoffstein..says sleep hygiene is the key to sweet dreams. That means having a consistent bedtime and a steady wake-up schedule. |
▪ II. sleep, v. (
sliːp)
Pa. tense and
pple. slept. Forms: (see below).
[OE. slápan, slǽpan, slépan (pa. tense slép, slépon, pa. pple. -slápen, etc.), = OFris. slêpa (WFris. sliepe, EFris. slepe, NFris. slêp, slîp), MDu. and Du. slapen, OS. slâpan (MLG. and LG. slapen), OHG. slâfan (MHG. slâfen, G. schlafen), Goth. slêpan (pa. tense saislêp, -zlêp, pa. pple. slêpans); wanting in Scandinavian. Besides the strong conjugation (with reduplicated pa. tense) OE. also had the weak forms slǽpte, slépte, and after the 14th cent. the strong conjugation disappears from the literary language. A similar change has taken place in WFris., where the pa. tense is now usually slepte, pa. pple. slept. The ME. slēped (mod.Sc. sleepit) may represent the northern OE. forms slépade, pl. slépedon (WS. inf. slápian). It is possible that the weak forms
slǽpte,
slépte, properly belonged to a causative verb corresponding to
MHG. (
ent)-
slæfen, older or
dial. G.
schläfen, although no trace of this usage appears in
OE. texts. The infinitive of this would have had the form
*slǽpan,
Merc. and
Angl. *slépan, and would consequently have been identical with the inf. of the strong verb, except where the latter had the special West Saxon form
slápan. The strong
pa. tense is frequent in
ME., and the strong
pa. pple. is occasionally found (
cf. also
aslopen); traces of strong conjugation appear in some
mod. dialects, but it is possible that these are new formations.]
A. Illustration of forms.
1. inf. (and forms connected with this): α1
slapan, 2
slapen, 4
slape.
| c 888 K. ælfred Boeth. xxxiv. §11 Þonne we slapað. c 893 ― Oros. iv. vi. 178 Þæt he..slapan ne mehte. c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Matt. xxvi. 45 Slapað..& restað eow. Ibid. Luke xxii. 46 Hwi slape ᵹe? c 1100 Canterb. Ps. xl. 9 Se þe slapð. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 7 Werie men is lief to slapen. 13.. Seuyn Sages 929 (W.), He..gan to slape. c 1350 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1881) 145 Sum men in kirk slomers and slapes. |
(
β) 1
slæpan, 3
slæpen, 3, 6,
sleape.
| c 888 K. ælfred Boeth. xlii, Ne slæpð he næfre. 971 Blickling Hom. 235 Swa he slæpende wære. c 1000 ælfric's Gr. (Z.) 211 (Harl.), Me lyste slæpan. c 1160 Hatton Gosp. Matt. xxvi. 45 Slæpeð..& resteð eow. Ibid. Luke xxii. 46 Hwi slæpe ᵹe? c 1205 Lay. 733 Leteð slæpen þene king. c 1275 Ibid. 18409 Suþþe hii solle sleape. 1565 Cooper Thes. s.v. Somnus, To sleape quietly. |
(
γ) 1
slepan (
slepp-), 2–3
slepen (3
sclepen,
sleop-), 5
slepyn; 3–6
slepe, 4
sclep(e, 5
scleppe; 5–6
Sc. sleip(e, 5–7
sleepe, 6–
sleep.
| c 825 Vesp. Ps. lxvii. 14 Ᵹif ᵹe slepað. Ibid. cxx. 4 Ne slepeð se. c 897 K. ælfred tr. Gregory's Past. C. lvi. 431 Swelce se stiora slepe. c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. ix. 24 Þæt maiden..slepes. c 1000 Ags. Ps. (Thorpe) lxxv. 5 [Hi] ongunnon..ᵹeorne slepan. c 1100 Canterb. Ps. xliii. 23 Forwæn slepest þu? c 1160 Hatton Gosp. Mark v. 39 Þis mæden..slepð. c 1205 Lay. 966 In eorðe heo sleopeð. Ibid. 25582 Agan ich forto slepe. c 1275 Prov. ælfred 468 in O.E. Misc. 131 Litil sal he sclepen. a 1300 E.E. Ps. iv. 9 In pees..Sal i slepe. 1340–70 Alex. & Dind. 344 We nolle sclepe in no sclowþe. c 1440 Promp Parv. 459/1 Slepyn, dormio. c 1450 Cov. Myst. (Shaks. Soc.) 41 What man in synne doth..scleppe. c 1470 Henry Wallace v. 347 Quhar he suld sleipe. 1570 Levins Manip. 70 To sleepe, dormire. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 314 Quhen he sleipis. 1617 Moryson Itin. ii. 46 He used to sleepe in the afternoones. |
2. pa. tense.
a. strong. 1–4
slep (1
sclep), 1, 3
slæp,
sleap, 2
sliep, 4
sleep,
slepp,
slepe (9
dial. slape).
pl. 1
slepon,
-un,
-an, 1, 3–4
slepen (4
slupen), 4
slepe.
The common
dial. form
slep is
prob. for
slept.
| c 888 K. ælfred Boeth. xv, Hi slepon ute. 971 Blickling Hom. 235 Se halᵹa Andreas þa slep. c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Matt. xxv. 5 Hnappudon hiᵹ ealle & slepun [c 1160 slepen]. c 1100 Canterb. Ps. lvi. 5 Ic slæp ᵹedrefed. a 1200 Vices & Virt. 51 He..reste and sliep. c 1205 Lay. 26009 Þe eotende lai and slæp [c 1275 sleap]. c 1220 Bestiary 771 Ðre daies slep he. a 1300 Havelok 2128 He slepen faste alle fiue. a 1300 E.E. Psalter iii. 5, I slepe [v.r. slep] And I ras. 1387 Trevisa Higden VIII. 227 He sleep in his studie. 1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. xvi. 272 Seuene slepen [v.r. slupen]. |
b. weak. (
α) 1
slypte, 1, 3
slæpte, 1, 3–6
slepte (1
slepde), 3
slapte,
sleapte, 6–
slept, 7
slep'd.
| c 825 Vesp. Ps. lxxv. 6 Hneapedun (vel slypton) slep heara. c 897 K. ælfred Gregory's Past. C. xvi. 101 Ða he æt ðæm stane slæpte. c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke viii. 23 Rowundum..ðæm [he] slepde. c 975 Rushw. Gosp. Matt. xiii. 25 Þa hie..sleptun. c 1205 Lay. 25622 Þer ich lai and slapte [c 1275 sleapte]. Ibid. 26024 Lai and slæpte. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 24 As Nabugodonosor slepte. 1535 Coverdale Gen. xli. 5 And he slepte agayne. 1617 Moryson Itin. i. 259 When we slept. 1648 Beaumont Psyche vii. ccvii, Our tender Flock, which slep'd. |
(
β) 4, 6
slepped, 4
sleppet, 5
sleppit.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 2551 Abram..Slepped. c 1375 Ibid. 3796 (Fairf.), Ful soft..he sleppet þat niȝt. c 1400 Destr. Troy 8225 He..sleppit euer after. 1513 Bradshaw St. Werburge ii. 863 As she slepped. |
(
γ) 4–5
sleped, 7
sleep'd, 7–8 (9)
sleeped;
Sc. 5–6
slepit, 6
sleipet, 9
sleepit; 9
dial. sleept.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 6333 Þar he sleped þat morntide. 1375 Barbour Bruce vii. 188 He slepit as foul on twist. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 93 Thay..sleipet sound. 1648 Beaumont Psyche viii. xlvi, When they wak'd and sleep'd. 1763 Phil. Trans. LIV. 18 He sleeped but indifferently. 1818 Scott Hrt. Midl. xlv, When I sleepit ayont the hallan. 1834 Southey Doctor, T' Terrible Knitters e' Dent (1848) 559 T' woman's doughter sleept we' us. |
3. pa. pple. (
α) 4
y-slape,
y-slepe,
i-slepe,
slepe; 9
dial. slepen,
sleppen,
slippen.
| c 1310 St. Brendan 130 (Harl.), Þo hi hadde alle islepe ynouȝ. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 2367 (Kölbing), He hadde litel yslape. 1390 Gower Conf. II. 99, I wolde have leie and slepe stille. |
(
β) 4
i-sleped, 4–6
sleped, 5
scleped,
-yd,
Sc. slepyt; 5
sleppit, 4
i-slept, 4–
slept, 9
dial. slep.
| 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. v. 4 Þat I nedde sadloker I-slept [v.r. slept, sleped]. c 1400 Destr. Troy 817 As he hade fast sleppit. c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 12963 When thei hadde scleped. c 1470 Henry Wallace vi. 629 Quhen..the Scottis had slepyt. 1548 R. Hutten Sum Divin. R vij b, Them..whych haue sleped. |
B. Signification.
I. intr. 1. a. To take repose by the natural suspension of consciousness; to be in the state of sleep; to slumber. Also
occas., to fall asleep.
to sleep rough: see
rough adv. 1 b;
to sleep tight: see
tight adv. 1.
| c 825 Vesp. Psalter iii. 6 Ic hneappade & slepan ongon. c 888 K. ælfred Boeth. xlii, Symle he bið lociende, ne slæpð he næfre. c 900 tr. Baeda's Hist. iii. ix. (1890) 186 Þa ᵹeswiᵹade he semninᵹa & his heafod onhylde, swa swa he slapan wolde. 971 Blickling Hom. 149 Þa æfter þon þa arison ealle þa þe þær slepan. 1154 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 1137, He ne myhte..sitten ne lien ne slepen. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 1605 He..slep and saȝ an soðe drem. a 1300 Cursor M. 14206 If he mai slepe, hele es at hand. c 1386 Chaucer Clerk's T. 168 She wolde noght been ydel til she slepte. a 1425 tr. Arderne's Treat. Fistula, etc. 32 Aftir refetyng of mete and drink, he went into his bedde and sleped wele all þe niȝt. 1483 Caxton Gold. Leg. 126/1 How many ben there..that slepen in the market place. 1530 Palsgr. 721/1 He that drinketh well slepeth well, and he that slepeth well thynketh no harme. 1590 Shakes. Mids. N. iii. ii. 38, I tooke him sleeping..And the Athenian woman by his side. 1621 Burton Anat. Mel. ii. iii. v, We are never better or freer from cares than when we sleep. 1686 tr. Chardin's Trav. Persia 86 Nor do they ever sleep without their swords by their sides. 1746 Francis tr. Horace, Epist. i. xviii. 66 Strange Hopes and Projects fill his Breast; He sleeps 'till Noon. 1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) VI. 124 The feathers of this bird..make the softest and the warmest beds to sleep on. 1841 Thackeray Gt. Hoggarty Diam. xi, I wonder whether the man sleeps easily and eats with a good appetite? 1880 Encycl. Brit. XI. 788 The tenrec..sleeps for three months in its burrow during the hottest period of the year. |
| Prov. 1581 G. Pettie Guazzo's Civ. Conv. i. (1586) 13 b, He which sleepeth with the dogges, must rise with the fleas. |
| fig. 1592 Kyd Sp. Trag. i. 23 Ere Sol had slept three night in Thetis lap. 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. v. i. 109 Peace, how the Moone sleepes with Endimion. |
b. Implying sexual intimacy or cohabitation. Also, with
around: to engage in sexual intercourse casually with a variety of partners; to be sexually promiscuous (
colloq.).
| a 900 Laws ælfred Introd. §29 (Liebermann), Ᵹif hwa fæmnan beswice unbeweddode, and hire mid slæpe. c 1000 ælfric Gen. xxxix. 7 His hlæfdiᵹe lufode hine and cwæð to him: Slap mid me! c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 967 Forð siðen ȝhe bi abram slep, Of hire leuedi nam ȝhe no kep. c 1386 Chaucer Sir Thopas 78 An elf queene shal my lemman be, And slepe vnder my goore. a 1400 Trevisa's Higden (Rolls) VII. 143 A clerk of þe court hadde i-sleped wiþ hire. 1819 Shelley Cenci i. iii. 63 Whilst she he loved was sleeping with his rival. 1898 Sessions Paper of Central Criminal Court Feb. 266 He has been sleeping with my wife. How would you like it? 1928 A. Huxley Point Counter Point xxvii. 445 ‘Sleeping around’—that was how he had heard a young American girl describe the amorous side of the ideal life, as lived in Hollywood. 1936 R. Lehmann Weather in Streets ii. 185 A child's out of the question now, they don't sleep together any more. 1940 W. Faulkner Hamlet ii. 92 All we want anyway is to keep her out of trouble until she gets old enough to sleep with a man without getting me and him both arrested. 1952 M. Laski Village xvi. 218, I don't think for a minute she's been sleeping around..but you know what gossip is. 1967 J. Potter Foul Play xiii. 161 He's only interested in George and Freda and whether Johnnie and Freda slept together. 1975 P. Loraine Wrong Man in Mirror 78 Rose Maddox was not a loose girl; she did not sleep around with just anybody. |
c. With
upon or
on (a matter), denoting the postponement of a decision till the following day.
In
mod. use also with
over in the same sense.
| 1519 State Papers Hen. VIII, I. i. 3 His Grace..sayd thatt he wold slepe and drem apon the matter, and geff me an answer apon the mornyng. 1600 Holland Livy xlii. xxv. 1129, I will sleepe upon it and bee well advised what to doe for the best. 1668 H. More Div. Dial. iii. xl. Wks. (1713) 289 It will not be amiss to consult with one's Pillow, as the Proverb is, and sleep upon 't. 1755 Mem. Capt. P. Drake I. xvi. 161 The Countess..assured him, that she would not let them sleep upon it. 1818 Scott Br. Lamm. x, The deil of ony master's face he shall see till he has sleepit and waken'd on't. 1889 Froude Chiefs Dunboy xiii. 185 Colonel Goring slept upon his problem, and woke the next morning resolute. a 1907 F. Thompson St Ignatius Loyola (1909) x. 192 He discussed all measures with his brethren; and ever enjoined them to sleep on the matter, and pray the next morning before decision. 1926 V. McNabb Church & Land 83 My friend rose from his seat. ‘I see—we must do things ourselves. I must sleep on this.’ 1959 S. Salton-Vane Black Whippet ii. 32 Sleep on it. Think it over, and come and see me early tomorrow morning. 1962 P. Gregory Like Tigress at Bay ix. 99 Let me think about it, though. I'd like to sleep on it. 1983 ‘W. Haggard’ Heirloom viii. 90 He simply looked at a problem hard and then slept on it. |
d. In phrases denoting freedom from anxiety.
| 1637 Massinger Guardian ii. ii, Sleep you Secure on either ear. 1677 W. Hughes Man of Sin ii. viii. 126 Doubt not a perfect cure:..I am secure that you may sleep on either side. |
e. to sleep like a top (
cf. 3 c).
| 1693 Congreve Old Bachelor i. 8 Should he seem to rouse, 'tis but well lashing him, and he will sleep like a Top. 1793 Gentl. Mag. Oct. 893/2 He sleeps like a top. 1819 Byron Juan ii. cxxxiv, Juan slept like a top, or like the dead. |
f. With
it: To spend one's time in sleep. Also with
out.
| a 1652 Broome Queenes Exch. 111, We'l..have him put in bed before he wakes.., and there, When he has slept it out, he will perhaps Be cur'd. 1760–72 H. Brooke Fool of Qual. (1809) I. 58 These have nothing to do but to sleep it. |
g. With
in: To sleep in the house, or on the premises, where one is employed (contrasted with ‘to sleep out’); also
Naut., to remain in one's berth all night; (
orig. Sc.) to oversleep; also, to lie in (
lie v.
1 23 d), to sleep late.
| 1827 C. I. Johnstone Eliz. de Bruce I. iii. 56 Ye whiles sleep in on a morning. 1840 R. H. Dana Bef. Mast iii, The steward..and..the cook..are allowed to ‘sleep in’ at night, unless all hands are called. 1883 W. Aitken Lays of Line 58 A'e mornin' last March, when Rab Black sleepit in. 1888 G. Macdonald Elect Lady 138, I had to be up early, and I was feared I would sleep-in. 1931 Amer. Speech VII. 20 Sleep in, to sleep late. ‘I'm going to sleep in tomorrow.’ 1931 D. L. Sayers Five Red Herrings i. 16 Shall I tell Mrs. McLeod to let you sleep in, as they say? And call you with a couple of aspirins on toast? 1935 Beaver Dec. 66/2 On Sundays the chief guide usually allows his voyageurs to sleep in, which means that instead of getting up at four o'clock they get up about six-thirty. 1967 E. Taylor Second Thursday ii. 31 Susan dear, you must have slept in this morning. 1975 J. Grady Shadow of Condor v. 90 Because he slept in and had an appointment, Malcolm excused himself from the exercises. |
h. With
in, in passive, of a bed. Also as
ppl. adj.| 1848 Thackeray Van. Fair xvi, The bed ain't been slep in. 1861 F. Nightingale Notes Nursing (ed. 2) 55, I assure you the bed has been well slept-in. 1939 W. Fortescue There's Rosemary, There's Rue xi. 79 We crawled up to our bedroom..and got under our bed-quilts, not between those slept-in sheets. 1966 N. Freeling King of Rainy Country 140 He..changed his slept-in suit. 1976 J. Crosby Snake (1977) xi. 53 She pulled the crinkly blue-and-white striped blouse as taut as she could..trying to make it look a little less slept-in. |
i. With
on: to continue sleeping, to sleep late.
| 1739–40 Richardson Pamela (1741) I. 267 I'll wake her,—said I.—No, don't,—said she,—let her sleep on; we shall lie better without her. 1939 ‘J. Bell’ Death at Half-Term v. 92, I let our lot sleep on, but the other four came over from the San, and woke them up. 1958 P. Scott Mark of Warrior i. ii. 44 In four hours Hussein would wake him... Esther would sleep on. 1969 J. Fraser Clap Hands if you believe in Fairies iv. 48 Don't worry too much if he's not sleepy. I'll let him sleep on in the morning. |
j. With
over.
† (
a) to sleep late (
Obs.); (
b) to spend the night at a place other than one's own residence (chiefly
U.S.).
| 1827 Harvard Reg. Sept. 202 They have indulged in the luxury of ‘sleeping over’. 1871 L. H. Bagg Four Years at Yale 570 On Sunday mornings, too, there is an unusual amount of ‘sleeping over’,—breakfast being often cut as well as chapel by the votaries of Morpheus. 1975 Sunday Advocate-News (Barbados) 15 June 7/2 The sleep-overs will be the night of the last Thursday of each session. On that night campers sleep-over if they choose to do so. 1977 D. Anthony Stud Game iii. 23, I begged him to sleep over... But he had an early appointment the next day. 1978 M. Puzo Fools Die xxviii. 331 Those were nights I'd hop a plane to Vegas for the evening, sleep over and come back in the early morning. |
k. With
out: to spend the night in the open air; also, to sleep away from the premises on which one is employed.
| 1852 [implied at sleeping vbl. n. 1 c]. 1890 Kipling Departmental Ditties, Barrack-Room Ballads 56 ‘E's sleepin' out an' far to-night,’ the Colour-Sergeant said. 1908 R. Brooke Let. 18 Aug. (1968) 139, I should love to sleep out with nothing but a few extra socks on. 1912 in N.E.D., sense 1 g. 1936 ‘J. Tey’ Shilling for Candles xiv. 159 He might have been sleeping out, the first three nights. But you know what last night was like. Torrents... He must have found shelter. 1974 Whig-Standard (Kingston, Ontario) 11 Jan. 7/1 There are more dossers sleeping out in London today than there were at the turn of the century. |
l. Of a bed or mattress: to afford sleep of a specified quality.
| 1942 W. Faulkner Go down, Moses 83 This here pallet sleeps all right to me. 1977 Austral. House & Garden Jan. 115/1 A foam mattress is generally lighter, is non-allergenic and resists mildew... Foam sleeps cooler in warm temperatures, it is claimed, and warmer in cool temperatures. |
m. With
up: to catch up on one's sleep, to stop for a sleep.
| 1951 Manch. Guardian Weekly 1 Feb. 3/3 The General..would say nothing more than that he was off for a rest. He headed..for the..hotel to sleep-up until Wednesday. 1968 Listener 11 July 50/2 It was..so full and exhausting..that, at the end of term..we used to sleep up for several days before venturing out onto the streets. 1968 in P. G. Hollowell Lorry Driver vii. 183 You want to give your mate a bit of a shaking up. What you do is to spot him ‘sleeping up’ and go quietly by him and turn your wagon round... Then hold your hands on the horn. |
n. With
through:
esp. of a baby, to sleep uninterruptedly through a period of time, usually the night.
| 1967 ‘L. Egan’ Nameless Ones i. 3 She's the most beautiful baby ever... Sleeping right through. God, when I think―. 1971 O. Norton Corpse-Bird Cries ii. 33, I..slept through until nearly ten o'clock on Sunday morning. 1976 ‘J. Charlton’ Remington Set xx. 104 ‘Baby going to be all right in the guest room?’ ‘She'll sleep right through,’ Fran said. |
2. fig. To lie in death; to be at rest in the grave.
| c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. xxvii. 52 And byrᵹenna..untyned weron &..lichoma halᵹa wæra ða ðe slepdon arison. c 1000 ælfric Hom. II. 566 Hwi sind ða deadan slapende ᵹecwedene?.. Ealle hi moton slapan on ðam ᵹemænelicum deaðe. a 1300 E.E. Psalter xii. 4 Ne euer þat I slepe in dede. c 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 878 In pouder sal slepe ilk man, And wormes sal cover hym þan. 1382 Wyclif Isaiah xiv. 18 Alle the kingus of Jentilis, eche slepten in glorie. c 1400 Destr. Troy 8225 He slode doun sleghly, & sleppit euer after. 1548 R. Hutten Sum Divin. R vij b, Euen so wil god bring them wyth him whych haue sleped. 1567 Gude & Godlie Ball. (S.T.S.) 164 The bodie sleipis, quhill Domisday. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 29 His owne people..buried him, where not a stones cast further, sleepes Tom Coriats bones. 1726 Ayliffe Parergon 172 A Person is said to be dead to us,..though he only sleeps unto God. 1750 Gray Elegy 16 Beneath those rugged elms..The rude Forefathers of the hamlet sleep. 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. i. i. ii, Charlemagne sleeps at Salzburg, with truncheon grounded. 1888 Burgon Twelve Good Men I. Pref. p. xxviii, He sleeps..in Holywell cemetery. |
3. transf. a. Of limbs: To be numb, to be devoid of sensation,
esp. as the result of pressure.
| c 1000 ælfric Hom. I. 490 Ᵹif we to lange sittað, us slapað ða lima. a 1000 Saxon Leechd. II. 66 Ᵹif þeoh slapan, adelf nioþoweardne secg,..læt reocan on þæt lim þætte slape. c 1340 Nominale (Skeat) 595 For drede my fote slepith. a 1533 Ld. Berners Golden Bk. M. Aurelius (1546) Gg vj, In moyste wethers one of my fyngers slepeth. 1562 Turner Baths 3 b, It is good for..suche membres as are num or slepe. 1895 ‘Sarah Tytler’ Macdonald Lass xvii. 208 Oh, to be walking there, though our feet were frozen and our fingers sleeping. |
b. Of plants: To be in a quiescent or drooping condition. (
Cf. sleep n. 5 a.)
| [1613 Purchas Pilgrimage ix. iv. (1614) 843 There are hearbes which seeme to sleepe all night.] 1797 Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) XVII. 274/2 Plants are said to sleep when the flowers or leaves are..folded together. 1837 P. Keith Bot. Lex. 325 These positions are not the same in the case of all leaves that sleep... Simple leaves that sleep are affected in their totality. 1880 C. & F. Darwin Movem. Pl. 111 In all such cases the cotyledons may be said to sleep. 1899 G. Massee Plant-Dis. 328 When this stage is reached the plant droops, or ‘sleeps’. |
c. Of a top: (see
quot. 1854).
| 1854 A. E. Baker Northampt. Gloss. 245 A top sleeps when it moves with such velocity, and spins so smoothly, that its motion is imperceptible. 1879 Thomson & Tait Nat. Phil. I. i. §106 It is the case of a common spinning-top,..not sleeping upright, nor nodding. |
4. fig. a. To be dormant, inert, inactive, inoperative, or quiescent.
spec., to act as a sleeping partner (see
sleeping ppl. a. 5) or as a sleeper (sense 2 d).
Very common during the 19th
cent. in various contexts.
| c 897 K. ælfred tr. Gregory's Past. C. lvi. 431 Swa hit ᵹebyreð ðæt ðæt mod slæpð ðæs ðe hit wacian sceolde, & wacað ðæs ðe hit slapan scolde. a 1225 Ancr. R. 272 Hwon þe olde unwine isihð ure skile slepen. a 1300 Cursor M. 25855 Let þi sin noght wit þe slepe. 13.. Polit. Songs, Song of Husbandman (Camden) 152 Mi lond leye lith ant leorneth to slepe. c 1425 Lydg. Assembly of Gods 1258 For he demyd sewerly hys sorow shuld nat slepe. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 183 Not withstandynge y{supt} this errour hath sleped thus longe,..these presumptuous heretykes now of dayes wolde renewe y⊇ same. 1597 Skene De Verb. Sign. s.v. Annexation, Induring the time of the quhilk dissolution, the annexation ceases & sleepis. 1610 Holland Camden's Brit. 353 This title slept and lay as dead untill the time of King Edward the Second. 1650 E. W. Virginia (1844) 32 A man and a boy, if their hands be not sleeping in their pockets [etc.]. 1784 Cowper Task v. 204 Violence can never longer sleep Than human passions please. 1855 Bain Senses & Int. iii. iv. §10 When any emotion not entirely wanting is yet allowed to sleep in the character. 1869 Freeman Norm. Conq. (1875) III. 113 The restless enmity of the Angevin never slept. 1949 D. Leon Ruskin i. i. 8 Telford supplied adequate capital and otherwise ‘slept’ most gracefully. 1975 J. Hone Sixth Directorate ii. 48 Once they were sure the man was with the KGB..they had watched him... And no one had come near him... They assumed the man was sleeping. |
b. Of business, etc.: To cease to go forward; to remain in the same state.
| 1550 Reg. Privy Council Scot. I. 98 The said mater had slepit of langtyme. 1560 J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 221 That tyme was the king occupyed with affaires of warre, & therfore the matter slept. 1649 Nicholas Papers (Camden) 165 There is a bussines hath slept some while in my hands, but I have not beene idle in itt. 1683 Temple Mem. 1672–9 Wks. 1720 I. 380 That Matter slept for the present. 1712 Addison Spectator No. 297 §10 He should certainly never let his Narration sleep for the sake of any Reflections of his own. 1821 Scott Kenilw. xvi, My suit should sleep there,..and with my suit my revenge. 1855 Macaulay Hist. Eng. xiii. III. 256 The question, having slept during eighteen years, was suddenly revived by the Revolution. |
c. To rest peacefully and quietly; to remain calm, still, or motionless.
| 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. v. i. 54 How sweet the moone⁓light sleepes vpon the banke. 1700 Dryden Cymon & Iph. 342 The giddy ship..stops, and sleeps again. 1781 Cowper Retirement 536 Then, all the world of waters sleeps again. 1826 Disraeli Viv. Grey v. viii, The blue..sea was sleeping beneath a cloudless sky. 1852 Thackeray Esmond iii. vii, Past the river, on which a mist still lay sleeping. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk. 631 A sail sleeps when, steadily filled with wind, it bellies to the breeze. |
5. fig. To be careless, remiss, or idle; to live thoughtlessly or carelessly.
| 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) V. 57 Ȝif eny..putteþ errour aȝenst us, he may take hede þat þe grete Homerus slepeþ somtyme. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VI, 86 The duke of Yorke and his adherentes..determined.. no lenger to slepe in so waightie a businesse. c 1600 Montgomerie Cherrie & Slae 1560 Then let us remuve, And sleip nae mair in sleuth. 1624 Massinger Renegado i. i, So shall you find me Most ready to assist you; neither have I Slept in your great occasions. a 1731 Atterbury (J.), We sleep over our happiness, and want to be rouzed into a quick thankful sense of it. |
II. trans. 6. a. With cognate object: To take rest in, continue in (sleep).
to sleep a dog-sleep: see
dog-sleep 1.
| c 825 Vesp. Ps. lxxv. 6 Hneapedun (vel slypton) slep heara. a 1300 E.E. Psalter lxxv. 5 Þai slepe þair napping. 1382 Wyclif Jer. li. 39 Y shal drunkne them, that thei..slepen an euere durende slep. c 1475 Partenay 5463 He ther slepte no slepe, manly waked ryght. 1552 Elyot s.v. Edormiscere, Whyle he dooeth sleape one sleape. 1611 Bible Ps. xiii. 3 Lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleepe of death. 1791 Cowper Retired Cat 48 She left the cares of life behind, And slept as she would sleep her last. 1810 Scott Lady of L. i. xxxi, Sleep the sleep that knows not breaking! 1848 Thackeray Van. Fair xliii, Sir Michael was sleeping the sleep of the just. 1897 Watts-Dunton Aylwin ix. vi, Turning into bed, [I] slept my first peaceful sleep since my trouble. 1927 R. Lehmann Dusty Answer iii. i. 139 Jennifer's peaceful flushed countenance and regular breathing greeted her astonished senses. She was sleeping the sleep of the slightly intoxicated just. 1944 W. S. Maugham Razor's Edge vii. 276 Gray's conversation was composed of clichés... He never went to bed, but hit the hay, where he slept the sleep of the just. 1977 Lancashire Life Dec. 57/3 Tired and ready to go home, we went back to the river where Edith's father was still sleeping the sleep of the just. |
b. to sleep a wink, usually with negative.
| 1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph. 316 A good vigilaunt Consul..whiche never slept one wynke duryng..his Consulship. 1609 Holland Amm. Marcell. 260 Not one of us durst either sit downe, or sleepe one winke for very feare. 1711 Swift Jrnl. to Stella 13 Nov., I slept not a wink last night for hawking and spitting. 1818 Scott Hrt. Midl. xlvi, I shall not sleep a wink the less sound. 1840 Thackeray Shabby-genteel Story ix, He..did not sleep one single wink all night. |
† 7. To put off or delay; to disregard, pay no attention to. Also with
out.
Obs.| 1470 Paston Lett. II. 398, I pray yow let not thys mater be slept. 1523 Ld. Berners Froiss. I. cclxi. 385 So these companyons..slept nat their purpose, but rode in a day and a night. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VI, 123 These valeaunt capitaines, not myndyng to slepe their busines, environed the toune with a strong siege. 1600 Holland Livy xxiii. xiv. 482 They might not sleepe their affaires and go slowly about their businesse. 1624 Heywood Gunaik. iv. 179 To persuade men to too much remisnes in wincking at and sleeping out the adulteries of their wives. 1792 T. Paine Writ. (1895) III. 79 It appeared to me extraordinary that any body of men..should commit themselves so precipitately, or ‘sleep obedience’. |
† 8. To digest by means of sleep.
Obs.—1| 1481 Caxton Reynard (Arb.) 63 Is your bely ful?..haue ye slepte your dyner? |
9. a. With
off or
† out: To get rid of, remove the effects of, by sleeping.
| 1552 Elyot, Edormire crapulam, to sleape out a surfet. 1611 Shakes. Wint. T. iv. iii. 31 For the life to come, I sleepe out the thought of it. 1760 C. Johnston Chrysal (1822) II. 29 He had scarce slept off his debauch. 1780 Mirror No. 106, Thus were Clavius's nights spent in getting intoxicated, and his mornings in sleeping off that intoxication. 1852 Thackeray Esmond iii. viii, In the morning, after he had slept his wine off, he was very gay. 1871 G. Meredith H. Richmond xiii, This piece of nonsense helped us to sleep off our gloom. |
b. With
away: To remove, get rid of, lose, or waste by sleeping.
| 1565 Cooper Thesaurus s.v. Crapula, To vomitte or sleape away his dronkennesse. 1592 Kyd Sp. Trag. iii. xv, Thou art ill aduisde To sleepe away what thou art warnd to watch. 1687 Miége Gt. Fr. Dict. ii. s.v., To sleep away Sorrow. Ibid., To sleep his Head-ake away. a 1716 South in Chambers Cycl. Eng. Lit. (1844) I. 444/1 He..may possibly go to bed with a wonderful stock of good-nature over-night, but then he will sleep it all away again before the morning. 1819 Scott Bl. Dwarf xiii, I am tired of a party that does nothing but form bold resolutions over night, and sleep them away with their wine before morning. 1828 H. Blunt Lect. Hist. Jacob (1832) 160 He will no more permit his children..to sleep away their souls, than..to sin them away. |
c. refl. To make (oneself)
sober by sleeping. Also simply, to sleep.
| 1565 Cooper s.v. Crapula, To sleape him selfe sober. 1619 Harris Drunkard's Cup 19 Hee hath slept himselfe sober. 1720 De Foe Duncan Campbell v. §2 Whensoever he is drunk and has slept himself sober. 1821 Scott Kenilw. xxxiii, He retreated down to his own den to conclude his lamentations, or to sleep himself sober. 1888 Pall Mall G. 25 Oct. 3/2 [The cats] philosophically slept themselves through the two exhibition days. |
10. a. With
out or
away: To pass or spend (a certain time) in sleep.
| 1565 Cooper s.v. Edormiscere, To sleape out one sleape. 1601 Shakes. All's Well v. iii. 66 Shamefull hate sleepes out the afternoone. 1649 J. Taylor (Water P.) Wand. West 20, There I sleeped out the later end of the whole Moneth of Iuly. 1766 C. Beatty Tour (1768) 37 Sleeped and waked the night away as well as we could. 1778 Pryce Min. Cornub. 178 When a pair of men went under-ground formerly, they made it a rule, to sleep out a candle, before they set about their work. |
b. Without adverb.
rare.
| 1613 Shakes. Hen. VIII, Epil., Some come to take their ease, And sleepe an Act or two. 1647 J. Eliot Day-Breaking Gosp. 17 None of them slept Sermon or derided Gods messenger. 1721 Bradley Philos. Acc. Wks. Nat. 77 These Birds, which sleep the Winter. |
c. In nonce-uses (see
quots.).
| 1606 Shakes. Ant. & Cl. ii. ii. 181 We did sleepe day out of countenaunce. 1655 Vaughan Silex Scint. (1900) 57 Yet never sleep the Sun up. |
11. To cause to sleep or fall asleep.
| 1815 Southey Common-Pl. Bk. IV. 402 He was in such pain that the doctors sleeped him to death. 1850 Latham Eng. Lang. (ed. 3) xvii. 445 When we say, the opiate slept the patient, meaning thereby, lulled to sleep. 1861 [see mother's blessing s.v. mother n.1 16 a]. 1923 Daily Mail 24 Feb. 7 A gasworks foreman..said that at present the gas included 13 per cent of carbon monoxide... ‘One per cent is sufficient to kill. It sleeps you to death.’ |
12. To provide with sleeping accommodation.
| 1848 Bartlett Dict. Amer. 306 She could eat fifty people in her house, but could not sleep half the number. 1883 Gringo & Greaser (Manzano, New Mexico) 1 Sept. 2/1 If we can find some other philanthropist who will kindly hash, beer and sleep us, we'll be there. 1884 Local Govt. Chron. 8 Mar. 181 The new Patent Sanitary Hammock is superseding every other mode of sleeping Vagrants. 1895 Sun 29 Dec. 3/3 The parents, owing to poverty, had to sleep their children in the same bed as themselves. 1919 Mencken Amer. Lang. i. 24 A sleeping-car sleeps thirty passengers. 1941 W. A. Percy Lanterns on Levee i. 12 Welcome, messieurs, I can eat you but I cannot sleep you. 1949 Spectator 11 Nov. 631/2 During August some hotels were sleeping four or five guests to a room. 1965 E. O'Brien August is Wicked Month xi. 113 Oh we got beds, we can sleep..eighty. 1977 Western Mail (Cardiff) 5 Mar. 10/7 (Advt.), Farmhouse holiday flat. Sleeps six. |
C. Comb.:
sleep-away a. (
U.S.), at which one sleeps away from home. See also
sleep-in, -out, -over,
ns. and adjs.| 1976 Woman's Day (U.S.) Nov. 244/2 Diana is told she must go to a sleep-away camp because the doctor says she needs more exercise. 1978 Chicago June 157/2 All the sleep-away camps have separate living quarters for boys and girls, but the tennis itself is mixed. |