asleep

a·sleep

A0463100 (ə-slēp′)adj.1. In a state of sleep; sleeping.2. a. Inactive; dormant.b. Indifferent: politicians who are asleep to the needs of their constituents.3. Numb, especially from reduced circulation of blood to a limb: My leg is asleep.4. Dead.adv.1. In or into a state of sleep.2. In or into a state of apathy or indifference.3. Into a state of numbness.4. Into the sleep of the dead.

asleep

(əˈsliːp) adj (postpositive) 1. in or into a state of sleep2. in or into a dormant or inactive state3. (of limbs, esp when the blood supply to them has been restricted) numb; lacking sensation4. euphemistic dead

a•sleep

(əˈslip)

adv. 1. in or into a state of sleep: to fall asleep quickly. 2. into a dormant or inactive state; to rest: Put your doubts asleep. 3. into the state of death. adj. 4. sleeping: He is asleep. 5. dormant; inactive. 6. numb: My foot is asleep. 7. dead. [before 1000]

sleep

asleep1. 'sleep'

Sleep can be a noun or a verb. The past tense and -ed participle of the verb is slept.

Sleep is the natural state of rest in which you are unconscious with your eyes closed.

I haven't been getting enough sleep recently.

To sleep means to be in this state of rest.

He was so excited he could hardly sleep.I had not slept for three days.2. 'asleep'

If someone is in this state, you can use the progressive form and say they are sleeping, but it is more common to say that they are asleep. Don't say, for example, 'He sleeps'.

She was asleep when we walked in.I thought someone had been in the house while I was sleeping.

To say how long someone was in this state, or to talk about where or how someone usually sleeps, use sleep rather than asleep.

She slept for almost ten hours.Where does the baby sleep?

Be Careful!
Asleep is only used after a verb. Don't use it in front of a noun. Don't, for example, say 'an asleep child'. Instead use sleeping.

I glanced down at the sleeping figure.She was carrying a sleeping baby.

Don't say that someone is 'very asleep' or 'completely asleep'. Instead say that they are sound asleep or fast asleep.

The baby is still sound asleep.You were fast asleep when I left.3. 'go to sleep'

When someone changes from being awake to being asleep, you say that they go to sleep.

Both the children had gone to sleep.Go to sleep and stop worrying about it.4. 'fall asleep'

When someone goes to sleep suddenly or unexpectedly, you say that they fall asleep.

The moment my head touched the pillow I fell asleep.Marco fell asleep watching TV.5. 'get to sleep'

When someone goes to sleep with difficulty, for example because of noise or worries, you say that they get to sleep.

Could you turn that radio down I'm trying to get to sleep.I didn't get to sleep until four in the morning.6. 'go back to sleep'

When someone goes to sleep again after being woken up, you say that they go back to sleep.

She rolled over and went back to sleep.Go back to sleep, it's only five a.m.7. 'send someone to sleep'

If something causes you to sleep, you say that it sends you to sleep.

I brought him a hot drink, hoping it would send him to sleep.I tried to read the books but they sent me to sleep.

Thesaurus

Adj.	1.	asleep - in a state of sleep; "were all asleep when the phone rang"; "fell asleep at the wheel"incognizant, unaware - (often followed by `of') not aware; "seemed unaware of the scrutiny"; "unaware of the danger they were in"; "unaware of the newborn hope"; "the most unaware person I've known"unconscious - not conscious; lacking awareness and the capacity for sensory perception as if asleep or dead; "lay unconscious on the floor"awake - not in a state of sleep; completely conscious; "lay awake thinking about his new job"; "still not fully awake"
	2.	asleep - lacking sensation; "my foot is asleep"; "numb with cold"benumbed, numbinsensible - incapable of physical sensation; "insensible to pain"; "insensible earth"
	3.	asleep - dead; "he is deceased"; "our dear departed friend"at peace, deceased, departed, gone, at resteuphemism - an inoffensive or indirect expression that is substituted for one that is considered offensive or too harshdead - no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life; "the nerve is dead"; "a dead pallor"; "he was marked as a dead man by the assassin"
Adv.	1.	asleep - into a sleeping state; "he fell asleep"
	2.	asleep - in the sleep of death

asleep

adjective sleeping, napping, dormant, crashed out (slang), dozing, slumbering, snoozing (informal), fast asleep, sound asleep, out for the count, dead to the world (informal), in a deep sleep My daughter was asleep on the sofa.

asleep

adjective1. In a state of sleep:sleeping, unawake.Idioms: dead to the world, fast asleep, in a sound sleep, out like a light.2. Lacking physical feeling or sensitivity:dead, insensible, insensitive, numb, unfeeling.3. No longer alive:dead, deceased, defunct, departed, extinct, gone, late, lifeless.Idioms: at rest, pushing up daisies.

Translations

睡着的发麻的

asleep

(əˈsliːp) adjective1. sleeping. The baby is asleep.睡着的2. of arms and legs etc, numb. My foot's asleep. （四肢）发麻的 fall asleepHe fell asleep eventually.入睡

asleep

→ 睡着的zhCN

asleep

dead asleep

In a deep, immovable sleep. I was dead asleep after my 12-hour shift; I didn't even hear the neighbor's car alarm going off!See also: asleep, dead

fast asleep

In a deep, sound sleep. "Fast" in this instance means "secure or fixed firmly in place," rather than "moving quickly." I had an 18-hour shift at the warehouse, so I was fast asleep in no time when I finally got into bed.See also: asleep, fast

be asleep at the wheel

To fail to attend to one's responsibilities or duties; to be inattentive to that which is important or for which one is responsible. Johnson was supposed to make sure the paperwork went through before the deadline, but it looks like he was asleep at the wheel. Our goalkeeper is such a nincompoop. We would have won that match if he hadn't been asleep at the wheel!See also: asleep, wheel

fall asleep at the wheel

To fail to attend to one's responsibilities or duties; to be inattentive to that which is important or for which one is responsible. Johnson was supposed to make sure the paperwork went through before the deadline, but it looks like he fell asleep at the wheel. Our goalkeeper is such a nincompoop. We would have won that match if he hadn't fallen asleep at the wheel!See also: asleep, fall, wheel

fall asleep at the switch

To fail to attend to one's responsibilities or duties; to be inattentive to that which is important or for which one is responsible. Johnson was supposed to make sure the paperwork went through before the deadline, but it looks like he fell asleep at the switch. Our goalkeeper is such a nincompoop. We would have won that match if he hadn't fallen asleep at the switch!See also: asleep, fall, switch

catch a weasel asleep

To surprise someone who is normally alert, shrewd, or on-guard. Primarily heard in US. You want to try to steal your transcript from the principal's office? You never catch a weasel asleep—and especially not that one!See also: asleep, catch, weasel

be asleep at the switch

To fail to attend to one's responsibilities or duties; to not do or be inattentive to that which is important or for which one is responsible. Johnson was supposed to make sure the paperwork went through on time before the deadline, but it looks like he was asleep at the switch. Our goalkeeper is such a nincompoop. We would have won if he hadn't been asleep at the switch!See also: asleep, switch

asleep at the switch

Failing to attend to one's responsibilities or duties; not doing or paying attention to that which is important or for which one is responsible. Johnson was supposed to make sure the paperwork went through before the deadline, but it looks like he was asleep at the switch.See also: asleep, switch

asleep at the wheel

sound asleep

Sleeping deeply. You must have been sound asleep if you didn't hear me knock over the coat rack when I came home last night!See also: asleep, sound

be sleeping on the job

To not be working as hard as one should; to be shirking one's responsibilities. If the boss catches you sleeping on the job like that again, you'll definitely get fired.See also: job, on, sleep

fall asleep

1. To yield to tiredness and begin to sleep. Please don't make too much noise—the baby has finally fallen asleep.2. euphemism To die. We told the kids the bad news that Pop-Pop fell asleep last night.See also: asleep, fall

*asleep at the switch

Fig. not attending to one's job; failing to do one's duty at the proper time. (Alludes to a technician or engineer on a train sleeping instead of turning whatever switches are required. *Typically: be ~; fall ~.) The security guard fell asleep at the switch and a robber broke in. If I hadn't been asleep at the switch, I'd have noticed the car being stolen.See also: asleep, switch

fall asleep

Fig. to go to sleep. I fell asleep while reading the very dull book. I got in bed and fell asleep at once.See also: asleep, fall

sound asleep

completely asleep; in a deep sleep. I was sound asleep when the fire broke out.See also: asleep, sound

asleep at the switch

Also, asleep at the wheel. Inattentive, not doing one's job, as in At the critical moment the watchman was asleep at the switch and only called the fire department when it was too late . This term came from 19th-century American railroading, when it was the trainman's duty to switch cars from one track to another by means of manually operated levers. Should he fail to do so, trains could collide. It was later transferred to any lack of alertness. The wheel in the variant is a steering wheel; similarly disastrous results are implied. See also: asleep, switch

fall asleep

Go to sleep; also, cease paying attention. For example, As soon as the lights were dimmed he fell asleep, or His lectures are so dull that I fall asleep. The literal usage, which uses the verb fall in the sense of "succumb," dates from about 1300; the figurative is several centuries newer. Also see asleep at the switch. See also: asleep, fall

be sleeping on the job

be asleep on the job

If someone is sleeping on the job or is asleep on the job, they are not paying attention to the things they should be doing. His arrest on suspicion of fraud proved that the other directors had been sleeping on the job. They accused ministers responsible for the new laws of being asleep on the job. Note: This expression is often varied. For example, you can also say that someone goes to sleep on the job or falls asleep on the job. When I got into the business, I found he had gone to sleep on the job. Was the publisher unable to afford an editor, or did he or she fall asleep on the job?See also: job, on, sleep

asleep at the wheel

not attentive or alert; inactive. informal The image here is of falling asleep while driving a car. A North American variant is asleep at the switch , which refers to the points lever or switch on a railway. 2003 Guardian Rowling has not been asleep at the wheel in the three years since the last Potter novel, and I am pleased to report that she has not confused sheer length with inspiration. See also: asleep, wheel

fall asleep

die. euphemisticSee also: asleep, fall

asleep at the ˈwheel

(especially British English) (American English usually asleep at the ˈswitch) (informal) not paying attention to possible problems: The agency has been asleep at the wheel and has failed to enforce regulations.This refers to someone falling asleep while driving a car or while operating a control on a train track.See also: asleep, wheel

sound aˈsleep

deeply and peacefully asleep: He had fallen sound asleep in the chair by the fire. ♢ The children are sound asleep upstairs.See also: asleep, sound

asleep at the switch

mod. inattentive to duty. (Not literal.) Donald was asleep at the switch when the call came in. See also: asleep, switch

asleep at the switch

Daydreaming or forgetting to do one’s job; a lapse in alertness. The term comes from American railroading, when trainmen were required to switch a train from one track to another. If they failed to do so at the right time, trains could collide. See also: asleep, switch

asleep

a·sleep

asleep

a•sleep

sleep

asleep

asleep

asleep

asleep

asleep

dead asleep

fast asleep

be asleep at the wheel

fall asleep at the wheel

fall asleep at the switch

catch a weasel asleep

be asleep at the switch

asleep at the switch

asleep at the wheel

sound asleep

be sleeping on the job

fall asleep

*asleep at the switch

fall asleep

sound asleep

asleep at the switch

fall asleep

be sleeping on the job

be asleep on the job

asleep at the wheel

fall asleep

asleep at the ˈwheel

sound aˈsleep

asleep at the switch

asleep at the switch

asleep

asleep

Patient discussion about asleep

ASLEEP

asleep

Synonyms for asleep

adj sleeping

Synonyms

Synonyms for asleep

adj in a state of sleep

Synonyms

adj lacking physical feeling or sensitivity

Synonyms

adj no longer alive

Synonyms

Synonyms for asleep

adj in a state of sleep

Related Words

Antonyms

adj lacking sensation

Synonyms

Related Words

adj dead

Synonyms

Related Words