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Glite Dictionary
💉 To make unconscious 🌈 To euthanize 🛏️ To help sleep 💻 To enter standby
to put to sleep

to put to sleep

1 3.4
Make an electronic device use little power so it can start again quickly
  • phrasal verb
  • Specialized
translation icon : poner en suspensión
  • On the rare occasion that you go to put a Mac to sleep and, well, it won't sleep, there's an easy way to find out what the holdup is.

Examples

  • Now, suddenly, the curtain has been pulled back and you have the ability to actually navigate between the last five active apps (the rest, according to Rachel, are put to sleep as with NoDo).

    Blog text (17)

  • The physical buttons the PlayBook does have are a problem: the volume buttons don't feel responsive, and the power button (which puts the device to sleep) requires quite a bit of pressure to work.

    Blog text (19)

  • Do you mind if I put my phone to sleep here on this phone bed here?

  • Surface is a tablet; when you are not using it, you would put it to sleep and not turn it off.

    Blog text (19)

  • If I were to put this computer to sleep and when I go to wake it up, let's see and boom LogMeIn just like that.

  • You can easily put to sleep your laptop by closing the lid or selecting the option from the menu.

  • To save battery, make sure to put to sleep your tablet when you're not using it.

  • The printer uses less power when you put to sleep the device after finishing your printing tasks.

Synonyms

to suspend
vsto put to sleep
141 3.9

To stop something officially for a short time

describes a power-saving low-energy state that resumes operation quickly
to go to sleep
vsto put to sleep
  • Specialized
73 3.1

To enter a low-power state that pauses activity to save energy

focuses on deliberate placement to save energy while allowing quick resume
to sleep
vsto put to sleep
  • Specialized
46 4.8

To put a device into a low-power state so it uses less energy

is the same meaning but often used as an exact technical verb
to fall asleep
vsto put to sleep
  • Specialized
1 3.0

To go into low-power mode automatically when a device is idle

covers intentional placement into low-power state for fast restart

Antonyms

to wake up
∞ 1.0

To stop sleeping or make someone else stop sleeping

to activate
715 3.6

To make a machine, system, or account start working

How Low-Power

to shut down
541 2.9
to hibernate
  • Specialized
1 6.3
to put to sleep
  • Specialized
1 3.4
to idle
1 3.2
to stay on
111 3.4

Surface Forms

put to sleep infinitive
put to sleep past
put to sleep past participle
putting to sleep present participle
puts to sleep third person singular

Morphology

put + to + sleep

The meaning 'place into a low-power or inactive state' is directly derivable from combining 'put' (bring something into a state) with 'sleep' (a state of inactivity/rest) and fits the common English pattern 'put X to Y' meaning 'cause X to enter Y'. Although the phrase can have a different idiomatic sense (e.g., euthanasia) in other contexts, the device-related sense is a straightforward metaphorical extension of the literal constituents and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows the words.

Etymology

Put to sleep for devices comes from the image of a person going to sleep to rest and use less energy but able to wake quickly. That's why it means 'to place a device in a low-power state so it can resume normal work fast'.