narcolepsy

noun

nar·​co·​lep·​sy ˈnär-kə-ˌlep-sē 

plural narcolepsies

: a condition characterized by brief attacks of deep sleep often occurring with cataplexy and hypnagogic hallucinations

narcoleptic

ˌnär-kə-ˈlep-tik 

adjective

Examples of narcolepsy in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Other common sleep issues that don’t affect the airways include movement disorders that cause nighttime restlessness or narcolepsy, a neurological disorder that affects the body’s sleep-wake cycles and causes excessive sleepiness. — Samantha Agate, Sacbee.com, 24 Sep. 2026

Among the 41 characters portrayed as having narcolepsy, 68% were depicted as incapable or unreliable. — Sandee Lamotte, CNN Money, 22 Sep. 2026

Lilly's purchase of AtaiBeckley in psychedelic drugs for mental health conditions and Centessa in sleep disorders such as narcolepsy were two deals that Berenberg specifically called out. — Jeff Marks,kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 15 Sep. 2026

To sleep, no more Two scientists who identified the role that a key neuropeptide plays in the uncontrollable sleepiness of narcolepsy were one of three recipients of the prestigious Lasker Awards, announced Thursday. — O. Rose Broderick, STAT, 10 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French narcolepsie, from narco- narco- + -lepsie -lepsy

Note: The French word was introduced by the physician and neurologist Jean-Baptiste Gélineau in "De la narcolepsie," Gazette des hôpitaux civils et militaires, 53e année, no. 76 (1er juillet 1880), p. 626: "Je propose de donner le nom de narcolepsie (de νάρκωσις, somnolence, et λαμβάνειν, saisir, prendre) à une névrose rare ou du moins peu connue jusqu'à ce jour, caractérisée par un besoin de dormir impérieux, subit et de courte durée, se reproduisant à des intervalles plus ou moins rapprochées." ("I propose to give the name narcolepsy (from nárkōsis, drowsiness, and lambánein, to seize, take) to a neurosis that is rare, or at least little known up to now, characterized by a pressing urge to sleep, sudden and of short duration, reoccurring in more or less close succession.")

First Known Use

1880, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for narcolepsy

• catalepsy
• epilepsy

Medical Definition

narcolepsy

noun

nar·​co·​lep·​sy ˈnär-kə-ˌlep-sē 

plural narcolepsies

: a condition characterized by brief attacks of deep sleep often occurring with cataplexy and hypnagogic hallucinations compare hypersomnia sense 2