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Glite Dictionary
REM sleep

REM sleep

10 4.1
A stage of sleep with fast eye movement, clear dreams, and high brain activity
  • noun
  • /rɛm slip/
  • Specialized
translation icon : sueño REM
  • During REM sleep, your brain is highly active, which is why most vivid dreams occur at this stage.
  • rapid eye movements
  • rapid eye movements
  • deep REM sleep

But then when we go into REM sleep, serotonin is shut off.

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Examples

  • I always know I'm REM sleep deprived when I'm irritable.

    Lex Fridman

  • Previous research has shown that when people are deprived of REM sleep, they are unable to form fear extinction memories after therapy.

    Blog text (9)

  • And instead, you get much more REM sleep and very little deep sleep.

  • I'm telling you your REM sleep will be sky high.

  • When we sleep, there are two basic phases: REM sleep and deep sleep.

    Blog text (11)

  • Our brains seem to use sleep, perhaps REM sleep specifically, to lay down new emotional memories.

    Blog text (9)

  • This is what we call a REM sleep rebound effect.

  • It takes about an hour and a half to move out of REM sleep into deep sleep.

    Blog text (11)

  • Most of the REM sleep, this dreaming sleep happens in the second-half of the night.

  • His eyes rolled and jiggled under his closed lids, a sure sign of REM sleep.

    Fiction book (1992)

Synonyms

REM
vsREM sleep
  • Specialized
13 5.2

A stage of sleep when your eyes move quickly and you have clear dreams

stresses the stage's higher brain activity and dreaming features
rapid eye movement
vsREM sleep
  • Specialized
2 3.9

A stage of sleep when the eyes move quickly and you have vivid dreams

applies to the whole sleep stage including vivid dreams and high activity
rapid eye movement sleep
vsREM sleep
  • Specialized
1 3.7

A sleep stage when the eyes move quickly and most dreaming happens

highlights increased brain activity during that sleep stage
paradoxical sleep
vsREM sleep
  • Specialized
6.3

A part of sleep when the eyes move quickly and dreams feel real

is defined by rapid eye movements and vivid dreaming rather than wake similarity

Surface Forms

REM sleep singular
REM sleeps plural

Morphology

REM + sleep

The meaning is directly compositional: 'REM' denotes the rapid-eye-movement sleep phase and 'sleep' denotes the biological state, so 'REM sleep' straightforwardly means the stage of sleep with rapid eye movements and vivid dreaming. This label-like combination follows common English medical/technical naming patterns and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituents.

Etymology

REM sleep gets its name from REM, short for 'rapid eye movement', because during this sleep stage a person's eyes move quickly under the eyelids while the brain is very active and vivid dreams happen. So, REM sleep means the part of sleep with strong 'dreaming' and fast eye movements.