to nod off
12
4.1
- phrasal verb
- /nɑd ɔf/
- Informal
:
quedarse dormido
- "You must have nodded off in your chair," she said.
- nod off to sleep
- nod off again
- nod off in the chair
So he would sit there and sometimes you would catch him kind of, you know, nodding off.
- So he would sit there and sometimes you would catch him kind of, you know, nodding off.
- I was just nodding off to sleep and there's this Dick wad up there saying let's bring Oklahoma back to American values.
- Oh, if you nod off a little too slow, go slowly like you're reading from a book.
Examples
-
After a long day at work, I usually nod off on the couch while watching TV.
-
I only seem to be able to nod off about an hour before I have to get up.
Fiction book (2000) -
It's okay, I nod off sometimes, too.
-
Hey, you nod off there, buddy?
-
I could nod off pretty quick.
-
Did you just nod off?
-
He'll nod off after a while.
-
I tried my best to nod off, but it was no use, so I gave up.
Fiction book (1994) -
I was actually just nodding off when you called.
-
Kedrigem felt pleasantly drowsy and began to nod off.
Fiction book (2002)
Synonyms
376
1.0
To start sleeping
43
2.3
To sleep lightly for a short time without meaning to
35
2.7
To fall asleep for a short time without meaning to
23
3.8
To slowly fall asleep without meaning to
7
8.1
To stop working suddenly or to fall asleep because of tiredness
7
2.1
To sleep lightly for a short time, often during the day
5
3.0
To fall asleep for a short time, often without meaning to
2
7.9
To fall asleep by accident because you are very tired
2
8.3
To fall asleep or pass out very quickly because you are very tired
1
4.4
To sleep for a short time during the day not in bed
1
7.6
To fall asleep suddenly because you are very tired
To begin to fall asleep without meaning to
Antonyms
How Sleepy
Surface Forms
Morphology
Given the provided sense of 'nod' as 'to start dozing' and 'off' as indicating movement away or a change of state, the combined meaning 'to fall asleep briefly' is directly compositional and predictable. This motion/change-of-state pattern with a verb + particle is common and readily inferable by a B1 learner who knows both constituents.
Etymology
The phrase nod off may come from the slow head movement when you begin to sleep: your head makes a small nod and then seems to drop off. That's why it means 'to fall asleep for a short time, usually without meaning to'.