siesta

[ see-es-tuh ]
See synonyms for siesta on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a midday or afternoon rest or nap, especially as taken in Spain and Latin America: He is trying to relax, but the road construction noise seems likely to ruin his siesta.

verb (used without object)
  1. to take a midday or afternoon rest or nap: It got so hot that even the cicadas started singing earlier and siestaed during the heat of the day.

Origin of siesta

1
First recorded in 1645–55; from Spanish, from Latin sexta (hōra ) “the sixth (hour), midday”

Words Nearby siesta

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use siesta in a sentence

  • They dined, therefore, in silence, and afterwards he laid himself down as usual on the sofa for a siesta.

    Skipper Worse | Alexander Lange Kielland
  • The session lasted until time for the noonday luncheon and siesta , and was resumed in the afternoon.

    The Private Life of the Romans | Harold Whetstone Johnston
  • We happened to reach it when the prisoners were having a siesta.

    A Journey Through France in War Time | Joseph G. Butler, Jr.
  • Is there no sombra where we can eat our lunch and take a siesta?

    Mexico | Charles Reginald Enock

British Dictionary definitions for siesta

siesta

/ (sɪˈɛstə) /


noun
  1. a rest or nap, usually taken in the early afternoon, as in hot countries

Origin of siesta

1
C17: from Spanish, from Latin sexta hōra the sixth hour, that is, noon

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