slumber

[ sluhm-ber ]

/ ˈslʌm bər /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR slumber ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object)

to sleep, especially lightly; doze; drowse.

to be in a state of inactivity, negligence, quiescence, or calm: Vesuvius is slumbering.

verb (used with object)

to spend or pass (time) in slumbering (often followed by away, out, or through): to slumber the afternoon away.

to dispel or forget by slumbering (often followed by away): to slumber cares away.

noun

Sometimes slumbers. sleep, especially light sleep.

a period of sleep, especially light sleep.

a state of inactivity, quiescence, etc.

Words nearby slumber

sluice, sluicegate, sluiceway, sluit, slum, slumber, slumber party, slumberland, slumberous, slumbershade, slumbery

Origin of slumber

1175–1225; (v.) Middle English slumeren, frequentative of slumen to doze, derivative of Old English slūma sleep (see -er⁶); compare German schlummern; (noun) Middle English slomur, slomber, derivative of the v.

OTHER WORDS FROM slumber

slum·ber·er, nounslum·ber·less, adjectiveun·slum·ber·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for slumber

Paul and McCain do not exactly have a history of slumber parties and hair-braiding.
Rand Paul Eats Up Hoax That John McCain Met With ISIS|Olivia Nuzzi|September 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
More than one-quarter of Americans are stealing those precious hours from their slumber, and are paying a steep price for it.
Short on Zzz’s? 15 Research-Backed Sleep Hacks|DailyBurn|May 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We need a great leader to wake us from our slumber and remind us that a two-state solution is urgently in our own interest.
Obama: Come Visit The Settlements|Samuel Lebens|March 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Budding doctors, actors, stock traders, lawyers, and writers all had a slumber party Wednesday night.
Inside the NYU Refugee Camp for Displaced Students|Kevin Fallon, Abby Haglage|November 1, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Coffin: A final resting place for corpses, and for daytime slumber for vampires.
‘Dark Shadows’ for Dummies or a Glossary of Key Names and Places|Jace Lacob|May 11, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Like a man lost in slumber, he heard nothing, he saw nothing.
Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard|Joseph Conrad
The elder sister, relieved and comforted, soon sank into slumber herself.
Horace Chase|Constance Fenimore Woolson
But the csikós would not let him turn his thoughts to slumber, he had yet something to tell him.
The Yellow Rose|Mr Jkai
Scarcely had the journalist composed himself to slumber, when the ruins were invaded by the party from the palace.
His Lordship's Leopard|David Dwight Wells
She arose to a sitting posture glancing around as a child might who has been suddenly awakened from slumber.
Trusia|Davis Brinton

British Dictionary definitions for slumber

slumber

/ (ˈslʌmbə) /

verb

(intr) to sleep, esp peacefully

(intr) to be quiescent or dormant

(tr foll by away) to spend (time) sleeping

noun

(sometimes plural) sleep

a dormant or quiescent state

Derived forms of slumber

slumberer, nounslumberless, adjective

Word Origin for slumber

Old English slūma sleep (n); related to Middle High German slummeren, Dutch sluimeren

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012