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Synonyms

doze

1 American  
[dohz] / doʊz /

verb (used without object)

dozed, dozing

  1. to sleep lightly or fitfully.

  2. to fall into a light sleep unintentionally (often followed byoff ).

    He dozed off during the sermon.

  3. to sleep for a short time; nap.

  4. to be dull or half asleep.

verb (used with object)

dozed, dozing

  1. to pass or spend (time) in drowsiness (often followed byaway ).

    He dozed away the afternoon.

noun

  1. a light or fitful sleep; nap.

    Synonyms:
    forty winks, catnap, siesta, snooze
doze 2 American  
[dohz] / doʊz /

verb (used with or without object)

dozed, dozing

  1. Informal. to clear or level with a bulldozer.

doze British  
/ dəʊz /

verb

  1. to sleep lightly or intermittently

  2. (often foll by off) to fall into a light sleep

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a short sleep

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • dozer noun

Etymology

Origin of doze1

1640–50; originally (now obsolete) to stupefy, make drowsy; compare Scots, N England dialect dozened, Middle English ( Scots ) dosnyt, dosinnit stupefied, dazed; akin to Old Norse dūsa rest, Swedish dialect dusa doze, slumber, Middle Low German dusen to be thoughtless; daze

Origin of doze2

First recorded in 1940–45; shortened form of bulldoze

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

As her rivals nervously shuffle in their boots, Shiffrin will clear space on the ground, fold a parka as a pillow, shut her blue eyes and doze off.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 3, 2026

These six podcasts offer respites for your brain, delivering tales that are diverting enough to keep you focused, but uneventful enough that you can doze off.

From New York Times • Nov. 30, 2024

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Tran, 40, said it happened soon after take-off when he would usually be getting ready to doze off.

From BBC • Mar. 18, 2024

Several will even doze off, napping in Tennis Paradise, which is the only place that actually lives up to that hype.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 3, 2024

Again, they lowered their voices, but just as soon as I got comfortable again and started to doze they broke into a loud chatter once more.

From "The Birchbark House" by Louise Erdrich

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.