sleepy — feeling a need or desire for sleep; drowsy
Part of speech: ADJECTIVE
Definition: feeling a need or desire for sleep; drowsy
Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈsliːpi/
Example Sentences
- My cat looks sleepy all day, but at 3 AM it suddenly becomes an Olympic athlete.
- The teacher's sleepy voice made the whole class start yawning too.
- After studying all night, she felt too sleepy to focus on the exam.
sleepy
ADJECTIVE[/ˈsliːpi/]
feeling a need or desire for sleep; drowsy
The student grew sleepy during the long afternoon math lecture.
Got the picture? Now let's practice.
🎤Pronunciation
🌳Etymology
Origin
Sleepy derives from Old English slæpig, formed by adding the adjective-forming suffix -ig to slæp (sleep). This combination literally means 'characterized by sleep' or 'inclined to sleep', reflecting the straightforward Germanic word formation typical of Old English.
Breakdown
slæp (sleep) + -ig (adjective-forming suffix, cognate with modern English -y) = sleepy (drowsy, inclined to sleep). The suffix -ig evolved into the modern -y ending used to create adjectives from nouns.
🎵Rhyme
🔗Collocations
📝Examples
“My cat looks sleepy all day, but at 3 AM it suddenly becomes an Olympic athlete.”
“The teacher's sleepy voice made the whole class start yawning too.”
“After studying all night, she felt too sleepy to focus on the exam.”
“We stopped by a sleepy town where nothing seemed to happen.”
“Even three cups of coffee couldn't fix his sleepy eyes on Monday morning.”
📚Related Words
Want to master 27,000+ words?
Sign up free for flashcards & quizzes.