catnap
1 Americannoun
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of catnap
Explanation
A catnap is a brief rest. If you need a break from studying for the big test tomorrow, you might take a quick catnap on the couch. Cats are famous sleepers, so it's not surprising that catnap was coined at some point during the 1800s. It describes a snooze that's fairly short and definitely doesn't involve climbing under the covers. You can take a catnap almost anywhere: on the bus, in front of the woodstove, or curled up in a comfortable chair like a cat! Use the word as a verb too: "I think I'll catnap for five minutes, right here in the library."
Vocabulary lists containing catnap
Festival of Sleep Day
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for July 20–July 26, 2024
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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.
It was love, yes, but also wanting a catnap because Hersh was still tired from his night out.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026
Some marine mammals sleep while swimming and some seabirds catnap while flying, letting one half of the brain doze while the other keeps working.
From Science Magazine • Oct. 27, 2021
You can even grab a quick catnap on your break.
From Slate • Oct. 2, 2020
She would help herself to perhaps a strawberry, a beverage or a catnap.
From Washington Post • Jul. 2, 2020
Maybe he could take a little rest, catnap like Mom did after dinner, before she started her hours of baking.
From "I Survived Hurricane Katrina, 2005" by Lauren Tarshis
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.
