asleep — in a state of sleep; not awake
Part of speech: ADJECTIVE
Definition: in a state of sleep; not awake
Pronunciation (IPA): /əˈsliːp/
Example Sentences
- My cat is asleep on my keyboard again, and I have an important email to send!
- The students were asleep during the boring lecture.
- I pretended to be asleep when my roommate came home at 3 AM singing karaoke.
asleep
ADJECTIVE[/əˈsliːp/]
in a state of sleep; not awake
The cat is fast asleep on the warm windowsill in the afternoon sun.
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🎤Pronunciation
🌳Etymology
Origin
The word derives from Old English 'on slæpe', a combination of the preposition 'on' (meaning 'in' or 'during') and the noun 'sleep'. Originally used as a phrase meaning 'in a state of sleep', it eventually fused into the single adjectival form 'asleep' by the Middle English period.
Breakdown
a- (from Old English 'on', meaning in/during) + sleep (slumber, rest). The prefix 'a-' originally represented the preposition 'on' and became grammaticalized as a prefix in adjectival constructions.
🎵Rhyme
🔗Collocations
📝Examples
“My cat is asleep on my keyboard again, and I have an important email to send!”
“The students were asleep during the boring lecture.”
“I pretended to be asleep when my roommate came home at 3 AM singing karaoke.”
“The baby finally fell asleep after two hours of crying.”
📚Related Words
Synonyms
Antonyms
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