sleepover
Americannoun
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sleepovers
plural
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an instance of sleeping over, as at another person's house.
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a person who sleeps over.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of sleepover
First recorded in 1970–75; noun use of verb phrase sleep over
Explanation
A sleepover is a night you spend sleeping at a friend's house. Some sleepovers are large gatherings of many pajama-wearing friends, while overs consist of just two people. If you're invited to a sleepover, you'll want to pack a sleeping bag, your toothbrush, and pajamas. Kids and teenagers are the most likely to attend sleepovers, which often mark the first time a child has slept away from her own bed. When a sleepover involves a group of friends, you can also call it a slumber party or pajama party. Sleepover has been used since the 1930s.
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.
See Examples For:
The mum-of-three was found dead at home her home in Sandringham "while hosting a children's sleepover", the paper reports.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
Comedian John Mulaney has a bit about the kid at a sleepover who waits until after midnight to announce, “It’s tomorrow now,” then spends the rest of the night correcting everyone.
From Salon ● Sep. 2, 2026
A few islanders were summoned for a sleepover at a different villa before Casa Amor, and for the first time, only three couples were in the final after two pairs got dramatically dumped.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
Right before her operation, she had a sleepover at my house.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
I made the mistake of inviting them to a sleepover in seventh grade.
From "The Hate U Give" by Angie Thomas
“We wanted to tap into the teen nostalgia of sleepovers, and things we always wanted to do at sleepovers, but never panned out in the way you imagine in movies,” said Mathers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
Watching these A.I. edits became a pastime for her friend group; they’d share the videos at school and at sleepovers.
From Slate ● May 12, 2026
They parked it in the pasture of one friend’s farm, called it the Cedar Hill Country Club, and had countless sleepovers during high school and college.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 23, 2026
The return of the sleepovers is good news for the museum and its visitors.
From Barron's ● Oct. 25, 2025
“Conner and his friends went camping a couple of times, so Keiko and I had the whole house to ourselves. Four nights in a row of sleepovers twice this summer! Like we were sisters.”
From "Keep It Together, Keiko Carter" by Debbi Michiko Florence
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.
