asleep

[ uh-sleep ]
See synonyms for asleep on Thesaurus.com
adverb
  1. in or into a state of sleep: He fell asleep quickly.

  2. into a dormant or inactive state; to rest: Their anxieties were put asleep.

  1. into the state of death.

adjective
  1. sleeping: He is asleep.

  2. dormant; inactive.

  1. (of the foot, hand, leg, etc.) numb.

Origin of asleep

1
before 1000; Middle English o slæpe, aslepe,Old English on slǣpe;see a-1, sleep

Other words from asleep

  • half-a·sleep, adjective
  • qua·si-a·sleep, adjective, adverb

Words Nearby asleep

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use asleep in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for asleep

asleep

/ (əˈsliːp) /


adjective(postpositive)
  1. in or into a state of sleep

  2. in or into a dormant or inactive state

  1. (of limbs, esp when the blood supply to them has been restricted) numb; lacking sensation

  2. euphemistic dead

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with asleep

asleep

In addition to the idiom beginning with asleep

  • asleep at the switch

also see:

  • fall asleep

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.