snooze
Americanverb (used without object)
-
snoozes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
snoozed,
past participle, past
-
snoozing
present participle
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
snoozesimple
-
snoozessimple
-
have snoozedperfect
-
has snoozedperfect
-
am snoozingprogressive
-
are snoozingprogressive
-
is snoozingprogressive
-
have been snoozingperfect progressive
-
has been snoozingperfect progressive
Past
-
snoozedsimple
-
had snoozedperfect
-
was snoozingprogressive
-
were snoozingprogressive
-
had been snoozingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of snooze
First recorded in 1780–90; origin uncertain
Explanation
When you snooze, you take a quick nap during the day. Nobody snoozes for too long though, because then you’d just call it "sleeping." Maybe you’ve fallen asleep in class before, dozed off while watching a movie, or snoozed for a minute while learning some new vocabulary. Wake up, sleepyhead! Snoozing is a light type of sleep, probably without dreams even. If you like reading at the beach, make sure you’re wearing sunscreen in case you snooze off.
Vocabulary lists containing snooze
The Lazy, Hazy Days of Summer
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"Pitch Perfect," Vocabulary from the movie
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Festival of Sleep Day
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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 document itself is mostly a snooze, as these things always are.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
"When you're old, you don't give a toss what anyone thinks, really, so you feel very free. You can have a snooze in the afternoon, and nobody thinks that's odd."
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
About all they’re hitting is the snooze button — snoozing and, on Wednesday, losing 4-1 to the Cleveland Guardians at Dodger Stadium.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 1, 2026
That’s no big deal if you’re going to binge movies or TV shows for hours or snooze the flight away.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 1, 2026
In the afternoon heat they snooze in the dusty dirt beneath that tangle of manzanita trees.
From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan
If kids can grow out of their pretend pals, so too can horror audiences of cynical snoozes like this.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 7, 2024
Whether you are growing fresh greens, scallions or herbs, you can add some novelty and nutrition to your winter meals while staying connected to nature as the outdoor garden snoozes.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 13, 2022
In Rest Mode, the ring snoozes your activity goals and readjusts your scores to prioritize recovery.
From The Verge ● Nov. 10, 2021
Not really enough to disrupt outdoor activity, the rain seemed the sort to foster contemplation and encourage Saturday snoozes and somnolence.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 7, 2021
A demon no bigger than Cocoa snoozes in a cage in a corner, and blue-glass bottles of haints rattle on a shelf in the very back.
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
As I drove through the nondescript suburbs of Reykjavík, my mother snoozed soundly.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
I snoozed, and I lost: Not only did I not snag a seat in the actual courtroom, but the media-overflow room was the most packed it’s been the entire trial.
From Slate ● Oct. 26, 2023
Perhaps I’m just a heavy sleeper, but I snoozed peacefully through the night, unable to hear anyone else’s snoring or late-night TikTok scrolling.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 31, 2023
The bear snoozed on a thick limb before finally dropping to the ground by early afternoon Sunday.
From Seattle Times ● May 15, 2023
Uncle Vernon rapped the glass smartly with his knuckles, but the snake just snoozed on.
From "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J.K. Rowling
Kiki will accompany the couple, who are currently based in Germany, at their shows before snoozing at home on the couch.
From BBC ● Jun. 28, 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
While some of you were snoozing off to the Oscars, I was giddy to see what happened when Dumper met up with Mariners star Julio Rodriguez in Team USA’s highly-awaited game against the Dominican Republic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 16, 2026
We also have the means to purchase a purebred pet from a woman who raises her cats in an immaculate home, where they take turns snoozing on a blanket in front of a fireplace.
From Salon ● Dec. 6, 2024
Three days later, with an anguished groan, Herbie chopped his first snake in two: it had been curled up on his sleeping bag, happily snoozing in the glow of his bodily warmth, when he awoke.
From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
