forty winks

American  

noun

Informal.

1. a short nap.

---

forty winks British  

noun

1. informal (functioning as singular or plural) a short light sleep; nap

---

forty winks Cultural  

1. A nap; a short sleep: “If you're feeling drowsy, take forty winks; I'll wake you when our guests arrive.”

---

forty winks Idioms  

1. A brief nap, as in There's just time for forty winks before we have to leave. This expression supposedly was first recorded in 1828 and relies on wink in the sense of “sleep,” a usage dating from the 14th century.

---

Etymology

Origin of forty winks

First recorded in 1815–25

Example Sentences

Dad having forty winks on the sofa after lunch on Christmas Day.

From The Guardian

It ranks airports by qualities such as discomfort, poor service, bad food, cumbersome immigration procedures and how hard it is to grab forty winks while waiting for a connection.

From Economist

That should make it easier to fall asleep after scanning headlines before you get your forty winks.

From Time

Researchers say taking forty winks in the middle of the day could reduce blood pressure and stave off heart attacks.

From BBC

Beauty sleep seekers rejoice; there are plenty of places at which to steal forty winks.

From Reuters