sleeping policeman
A speed bump.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Slow down before you hit that sleeping policeman.”
“The car bounced hard because the driver did not see the sleeping policeman in the road.”
“To ensure the safety of pedestrians in the residential district, the city council installed a series of sleeping policemen along the main thoroughfare.”
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let a sleeping dog lie
Alternative form of let sleeping dogs lie.
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let sleeping dogs lie
To leave things as they are; especially, to avoid restarting or rekindling an old argument; to leave disagreements in the past.
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sleeping at the switch
Alternative form of asleep at the switch.
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sleeping giant
Someone or something with great, latent strength.
Last updated August 10, 2026