fall asleep

Idioms  

1. Go to sleep; also, cease paying attention. For example, As soon as the lights were dimmed he fell asleep, or His lectures are so dull that I fall asleep. The literal usage, which uses the verb fall in the sense of “succumb,” dates from about 1300; the figurative is several centuries newer. Also see asleep at the switch.

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Example Sentences

"As a mother myself, I couldn't even fall asleep at night and images kept flashing in my memory," she said.

From Barron's • Jun. 26, 2026

Chen began by massaging my scalp for about 10 minutes, as I tried not to fall asleep.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 6, 2026

Mercurial and unreliable in the studio, Stewart would sometimes fall asleep on the couch during recording sessions or lie down in the vocal booth.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

He added: "Just the fact that I found it so normal, in a sad way, that it was okay to just put my head on the pillow and fall asleep."

From BBC • Mar. 17, 2026

The fairy waved a bit in response, then settled back to fall asleep.

From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley

Related Words

• bed down
• doze
• languish
• relax
• snooze