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| sleep [ sleep ] |
noun |
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| Definition: |
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1. state of not being awake: a state of partial or full unconsciousness in people and animals, during which voluntary functions are suspended and the body rests and restores itself, or a period spent in this state
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2. state resembling sleep: any state that is inactive or dormant, like sleep
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3.
(
literary
)
Same as death (sense 1)
(
also euphemistic
)
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4. mucus in eyes: small amounts of dried mucus that collect in the eyes during sleep
(
informal
)
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5. botany
Same as nyctitropism
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verb (past and past participle slept [ slept ], present participle sleep·ing, 3rd person present singular sleeps) |
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| Definition: |
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1. intransitive verb be in state of sleep: to be in or go into a state of sleep
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2. transitive verb spend time in sleep: to spend a period of time sleeping
  We slept the night in a hotel.
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3. transitive verb provide beds for people: to provide sleeping accommodations for a particular number of people
The yacht sleeps eight.
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4. intransitive verb be inactive: to be in an inactive or dormant state
a city that never sleeps
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5. intransitive verb be dead: to be dead
(
literary
)
(
also euphemistic
)
He sleeps in the bosom of Abraham.
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6. intransitive verb botany change position at night: in plants, to assume a position at night that is different from the daytime position
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| [ Old English slǣp (noun), slǣpan (verb) < Germanic] |
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get or go to sleep to begin sleeping
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in your sleep
1. while you are sleeping
2. with ease, as if not having to be fully awake (informal)
I could find my way there in my sleep, I've been so often.
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not lose (any) sleep over something to not worry about something because it is thought to be trivial or irrelevant
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put somebody to sleep to anesthetize somebody
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put something to sleep to kill an animal in a humane way, especially because it is ill, injured, or in pain
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sleep on it to postpone a decision until at least the next day in order to give it more thought
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sleep rough U.K. to sleep outdoors, especially in the street, usually as a result of being homeless
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