to sleep with one eye open
5
7.9
- idiom
- Informal
:
dormir con un ojo abierto
- After hearing the strange noises outside, I knew I had to sleep with one eye open.
- sleep well with one eye open
Examples
-
Fool or not, I stole a knife from the kitchen, hid it under my pillow, and slept with one eye open.
Fiction book (1990) -
Avila will see that as long as Balboa lives, he must sleep with one eye open.
Academic text (2007) -
We all better sleep with one eye open.
-
I have to sleep with one eye open.
-
Sleep, but sleep with one eye open.
Blog text (1) -
Thanks, I'll sleep with one eye open.
-
If I were you, I'd sleep with one eye open.
-
Sleep with one eye open.
-
Because you don't want bad blood in the cell unless you want to sleep with one eye open.
Blog text (30) -
So you better sleep with one eye open, because you can't hide from me!
Synonyms
134
3.2
Watch carefully for someone or something
97
3.8
Watch carefully for danger or a chance
16
4.6
Watch carefully for something important or dangerous
4
3.7
Stay alert to hear useful news or information
1
6.0
Watch carefully for something you expect to see
Watch carefully for danger or a chance to act
Antonyms
How Alert
30
3.1
- Informal
253
2.4
- Informal
5
7.9
1
3.7
19
3.2
Surface Forms
Morphology
sleep + with + one + eye + open
The meaning 'to remain watchful or alert while resting' follows directly from the literal image of 'sleep' combined with having 'one eye open'; a B1 learner who knows the component words can readily infer this figurative sense. The metaphor is concrete and cross-linguistically intuitive, so the overall meaning is compositionally transparent rather than idiomatically opaque.
Etymology
The phrase sleep with one eye open comes from the image of someone trying to sleep but keeping one eye open to watch for danger. That's why today it means 'to stay watchful' even while resting.