snore
Americanverb (used without object)
-
snores,
present (3rd person singular)
-
snored,
past participle, past
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snoring
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
snores,
present (3rd person singular)
-
snored,
past participle, past
-
snoring
present participle
noun
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snores
plural
-
the act, instance, or sound of snoring.
-
Slang. a person or thing that is dull and boring.
Eighth grade is such a snore.
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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snoresimple
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snoressimple
-
have snoredperfect
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has snoredperfect
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am snoringprogressive
-
are snoringprogressive
-
is snoringprogressive
-
have been snoringperfect progressive
-
has been snoringperfect progressive
Past
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snoredsimple
-
had snoredperfect
-
was snoringprogressive
-
were snoringprogressive
-
had been snoringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of snore
1300–50; Middle English snoren (v.); cognate with Middle Low German, Middle Dutch snorren
Explanation
If you snore, you breathe loudly through your nose while you're asleep. If your roommate snores, you may need to get yourself some ear plugs so that you can sleep. Most of us snore occasionally when we're congested, but some people snore every time they sleep. This kind of snore can be a serious health problem, since air isn't flowing easily in and out as the snorer breathes. In some cases, snoring is connected to sleep apnea, which means a sleeper actually stops breathing several times throughout the night. Colloquially, a snore is also a dull, boring thing: "The movie was a total snore."
Vocabulary lists containing snore
Festival of Sleep Day
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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.
See Examples For:
The way they speed and slow, roar and snore, constantly balancing thrust to counteract changing winds?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2025
However, these teens who snored did not exhibit any differences in their reading and language abilities, nor any difference on memory or cognitive processing tests compared to their peers who did not snore.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 21, 2024
"With the AI, it can be trained to know what you sound like specifically when you snore," a representative insists.
From BBC ● Jan. 12, 2024
You might expect a book about parking to be a snore.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 9, 2023
I must have fallen asleep because I woke myself up some time later with a loud snore.
From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly
No iPhone glows disturbed the darkness, just snores and the thud of wheels, the occasional whoosh of a passing train tilting us to one side.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 29, 2025
It was now a cold, silent night, broken only by snores, the occasional yelp of someone dreaming, and the hoot of a single owl.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2025
Indeed, sleep apnea may be yet another of the great undiagnosed epidemics: Virtually anyone who snores is at the very least on the spectrum for sleep apnea, as Sullivan pointed out.
From Salon ● Oct. 23, 2023
“I wasn’t sleeping at all. He snores really loud. I was waking up resentful, frankly, every morning.”
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 2, 2023
Ollie snores a little and rubs his head against my hand.
From "Legend" by Marie Lu
Dogs snored next to their owners, who were glued to their phones, screens lighting up weary faces.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
Around her, people snored, babies cried and dogs barked.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026
However, these teens who snored did not exhibit any differences in their reading and language abilities, nor any difference on memory or cognitive processing tests compared to their peers who did not snore.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 21, 2024
"I've never snored in our 18 year marriage but my husband says since my accident in March I've been like a fog horn," she told BBC Scotland News.
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2024
Then, for the rest of the ride, the rowdier kids snored loudly.
From "Clayton Byrd Goes Underground" by Rita Williams-Garcia
But witnesses said that Pike remained awake longer than expected and was later heard "loudly snoring" before an ambulance rushed her to a nearby hospital.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
The condemned woman was "loudly snoring, clearly very alive" as the journalists were ushered out of the area, Chandler told CBS.
From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026
We always have grand plans about watching a movie or whatever, and then we’re both inevitably snoring by 10 p.m. at the latest.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
Sleeping with 60 people in a damp basement that proves snoring is an international language.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
Muscle Man is snoring, and the young man who argued with him is chatting quietly with someone else.
From "Born Behind Bars" by Padma Venkatraman
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.
