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catnap

[kat-nap]
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noun
  1. a short, light nap or doze.
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verb (used without object), cat·napped, cat·nap·ping.
  1. to doze or sleep lightly.
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Origin of catnap

An Americanism dating back to 1815–25; cat + nap1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for catnap

Historical Examples

  • There was no yawning and stretching and closing one eye for a catnap about that awakening.

    In Pastures Green

    Peter McArthur

  • Dr. Grenfell went to his room to snatch a catnap before the start.

  • Sometimes when I get here a little early I take a catnap myself.

    The Six Fingers of Time

    Raphael Aloysius Lafferty

  • He fought bravely against his seasickness and took the key for a time while Jack stole a catnap.

British Dictionary definitions for catnap

catnap

noun
  1. a short sleep or doze
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verb -naps, -napping or -napped
  1. (intr) to sleep or doze for a short time or intermittently
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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

Word Origin and History for catnap

n.

also cat-nap, cat's nap, by 1823, from cat (n.) + nap (n.). A nap such as a cat takes. As a verb from 1859.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper