asleep

[uh-sleep]

adverb

1. in or into a state of sleep.

   He fell asleep quickly.

2. into a dormant or inactive state; to rest.

   Their anxieties were put asleep.

3. into the state of death.

adjective

1. sleeping.

   He is asleep.

2. dormant; inactive.

3. (of the foot, hand, leg, etc.) numb.

4. dead.

asleep

/ əˈsliːp /

adjective

1. in or into a state of sleep

2. in or into a dormant or inactive state

3. (of limbs, esp when the blood supply to them has been restricted) numb; lacking sensation

4. euphemistic,  dead

Other Word Forms

• half-asleep adjective
• quasi-asleep adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of asleep¹

before 1000; Middle English o slæpe, aslepe, Old English on slǣpe; a- ¹, sleep

Idioms and Phrases

• fall asleep

Example Sentences

"I could fall onto my bed asleep having been drunk - but then the alarm would go, I'd get up, pull myself together, and I would go to work," she says.

From BBC

“At one of those screenings, I did look over and there was a woman in the back row who was dead asleep. So you go, ‘Huh.

From Los Angeles Times

Asprilla's concerned team-mates once even got a taxi to his house after he did not show up for a team lunch in Newcastle, only to find him asleep following a night on the town.

From BBC

Michelle, 15, plans to "read a book to fall asleep", instead of staying up on her phone and laptop.

From BBC

“One time I fell asleep at the team meeting, standing up. First time I ever fell asleep standing up.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• comatose 
• dormant