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sleepy

adjective

ˈslē-pē How to pronounce sleepy (audio)
Definition of sleepynext
1
as in sleeping
desiring or needing sleep the sleepy children were carried up to bed

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2
as in dull
slow to move or act a sleepy little town on the coast

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3
as in hypnotic
tending to cause sleep the sleepy drone of his voice made staying awake a challenge

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4
as in slow
lacking in gaiety, movement, or animation a sleepy party that was mostly attended by the same boring people I work with

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of sleepy Tucked into a sleepy section of southern Sacramento County, a vineyard and winery with a private water feature offers a unique wine tasting experience. — Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 11 Sep. 2026 Today, Gander International Airport feels smaller and sleepier than its reputation might suggest. — Nicola Chilton, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Sep. 2026 Booksellers like Payne typically post their holdings on multiple websites, such as AbeBooks, Alibris, Amazon, and Biblio, with Alibris widely considered to be the sleepiest revenue stream of the bunch. — Francesca Mancino, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2026 For most of their lives, the tracks were a sleepy industrial bypass known as the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway. — John Lippert, Chicago Tribune, 6 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for sleepy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sleepy
  1. sleeping
  2. dull
  3. hypnotic
  4. slow
  5. resting
  6. lazy
  7. drowsy
  8. motionless
Adjective
  • An autopsy showed that the infant died from asphyxiation secondary to a co-sleeping/overlay event with an unsafe sleeping environment.
    — Laura Bauer, Kansas City Star, 26 Feb. 2026
Definition of sleeping
Adjective
  • They were illuminated as dull streaks of red, as the group’s flashlights were covered with red tape to reduce the light.
    — Sean Macaday, Sacbee.com, 19 Sep. 2026
  • Prime Video continues to be one of the most baffling streaming services, from dull originals like Reacher to a revolving catalogue of films that never saw the light of an actual movie theater.
    — Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of dull
Adjective
  • The sheer force of the falls, crashing over jagged cliffs, is hypnotic, drawing millions of visitors each year.
    — Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2026
  • And while Cincinnati Bengals star QB Joe Burrow wasn’t quite as hypnotic, his team’s new-look defense fueled a 33-27 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and provided hope that Cincy can end a three-year streak of missing the postseason.
    — Michael Silver, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of hypnotic
Adjective
  • The slowest can count roughly 500 bills a minute, or about eight bills a second, while the fastest can count 2,000-plus bills a minute, or about 33-plus bills a second.
    — BestReviews, Chicago Tribune, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Heading south on Highway 395, a must do is slow down and take the June Lake Loop which is a riot of fall colors.
    — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of slow
Adjective
  • That’s because when the body experiences physical stress, including losing weight quickly, more hairs can shift into a resting phase and fall out a few months later — typically two to three months after the event, Rossi explains.
    — Tom Gavin, EverydayHealth.com, 17 Feb. 2026
  • This is a condition where, due to stress or hormonal changes, the body puts the hair follicles into a resting phase.
    — Essence, Essence, 19 Dec. 2025
Definition of resting
Adjective
  • But whereas The Holdovers’s Paul Hunham despises his lazy, pampered students, The Debut’s Jerry Blankenbuehler has a determination to summon theatrical magic out of his meager cast.
    — Joe Reid, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026
  • In places at low to moderate risk of fire, along the edges of flat valleys and lazy hills, growth in the FAIR Plan is ballooning, and it is being used to underwrite new suburban development.
    — Paige St. John, Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of lazy
Adjective
  • Allergy drugs can ease those symptoms and make people drowsy, potentially offering relief from insomnia.
    — Kara Smythe, EverydayHealth.com, 15 May 2026
  • Fleets that deployed the company's AI dash cams, which detect drowsy or distracted driving, saw a 73% reduction in accidents after 30 months, according to company data from more than 2,600 customers.
    — TIME Contributors, Time, 29 Apr. 2026
Definition of drowsy
Adjective
  • Trainers and doctors brought out the cart and put a motionless Reed on a long spine board to protect the player from suffering further damage.
    — Armando Salguero OutKick, FOXNews.com, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Ninety-five out of 111 imaged cells lit up during slow-wave sleep and quiet, motionless wakefulness, and fell silent during running and REM sleep.
    — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of motionless

Browse Nearby Words

sleepwear
sleepy
sleigh bed
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Cite this Entry

“Sleepy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sleepy. Accessed 25 Sep. 2026.

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