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Dictionary definition: sleep
- Article from:
- The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English
Copyright© The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English 2009, originally published by Oxford University Press 2009. (Hide copyright information)
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sleep
/
slēp
/
•
n.
a condition of body and mind such as that which typically recurs for several hours every night, in which the nervous system is relatively inactive, the eyes closed, the postural muscles relaxed, and consciousness practically suspended:
I was on the verge of sleep
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[in
sing.
]
a good night's sleep.
∎
chiefly
poetic/lit.
a state compared to or resembling this, such as death or complete silence or stillness:
a photograph of the poet in his last sleep.
∎
a gummy or gritty secretion found in the corners of the eyes after sleep:
she sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
•
v.
(
past
and
...