siesta

American  

[see-es-tuh] / siˈɛs tə /

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.

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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.

siesta British  

/ sɪˈɛstə /

noun

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

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Etymology

Origin of siesta

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

Explanation

You can make your afternoon nap sound a little more exotic if you call it a siesta. In some countries, it's common for people to take a siesta after lunch. In warm parts of Southern Europe and the Mediterranean, the siesta is an important part of the culture. It's especially ingrained in Spain—and in Italy, where it's called a riposo. The Spanish word siesta, "mid-day nap," comes from the Latin phrase sexta hora, "sixth hour," or noon. The prevalence of siestas in certain countries is probably connected to hot weather and traditions of large mid-day meals.

Example Sentences

He created the YouTube channel Siesta Dog TV which features videos of dogs, for dogs, in colours they can see best.

From BBC • Apr. 9, 2026

Instead, Milton veered south, making landfall near Siesta Key and thus sparing Tampa from the worst-case scenarios that many had predicted.

From Slate • Oct. 21, 2024

Milton made landfall at around 8:30 pm near Siesta Key, Florida, a barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Sarasota.

From Salon • Oct. 10, 2024

An 8-foot-tall Lego man washed ashore on a Siesta Key beach in October 2011.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 9, 2022

Siesta time was past and I struck on out of town.

From Tramping Through Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras — Being the Random Notes of an Incurable Vagabond by Franck, Harry Alverson