sleeping
Americannoun
adjective
-
of, relating to, or having accommodations for sleeping.
a sleeping compartment.
-
used to sleep in or on.
a sleeping jacket.
-
used to induce or aid sleep or while asleep.
sleeping mask.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of sleeping
Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at sleep, -ing 1, -ing 2
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.
So, I would spend summers being bussed out or sleeping out at cousins and grandparents and aunts and uncles’ houses to work on the farm.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026
Thirty years ago L.A. firefighters found children sleeping in closets and babies snoozing in dresser drawers.
From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026
A total of 631 people spent at least one night sleeping rough in Derby in 2025, according to figures released by Derby Homes to the BBC under the Freedom of Information Act.
From BBC • May 4, 2026
And she’s not even at the low end of sleeping practices for a baby her age: She sometimes manages to sleep five hours in a row.
From Slate • May 3, 2026
Betsie had long since moved into Tante Jans’s little sleeping cubicle where she would be nearer the kitchen and the doorbell.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
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.
