Word
slumber
Phoneticsslum·ber
US/ˈsɫəmbɝ/
UK/slˈʌmbɐ/
Definitions
01to sleep
v. to sleep, especially in a peaceful or quiet way.
v. to sleep; often used in literary contexts to suggest a light or peaceful state of rest.
“The cat slumbered peacefully in the warm patch of sunlight on the rug.”
“The forest seemed to slumber under the heavy blanket of midwinter snow, with no sound breaking the absolute silence of the woods.”
Literary
Usage
The verb is intransitive and does not take a direct object.
Antonyms
02to be inactive
v. to be quiet or not active for a long time, like a volcano or a hidden talent.
v. to exist in a state of dormancy, inactivity, or negligence.
“The old volcano had slumbered for centuries before it suddenly erupted.”
“His artistic talents slumbered during his years in the corporate world, only to be rediscovered after his retirement.”
Literary
Teaching tip
This sense is often used metaphorically for things that are temporarily quiet but could become active again.
Antonyms
03a state of sleep
n. a period of sleep.
n. a state of sleep or rest; frequently used in the plural in poetic contexts.
“He fell into a deep slumber after the long and tiring journey.”
“The sudden ringing of the telephone disturbed her light slumber, leaving her disoriented in the darkened room.”
Literary · Formal
Antonyms
Real-World Examples
“Or maybe they’ve been teased themselves after delivering a complete but one-sided conversation while fully asleep at a slumber party.” “Hours later, once the Azteca had fallen silent, he headed for a light dinner and then to bed, where he quickly fell into another deep slumber.” Etymology
From Middle English slombren, slomren, frequentative of Middle English slummen, slumen (“to doze”), probably from Middle English slume (“slumber”), from Old English slūma, from Proto-Germanic slūm- (“slack, loose, limp, flabby”), from Proto-Indo-European (s)lew- (“loose, limp, flabby”). Cognate with West Frisian slommerje, slûmerje (“to slumber”), Dutch sluimeren (“to slumber”), German schlummern (“to slumber, doze”), Swedish slummer (“to slumber”). By surface analysis, sloom + -er.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/slumber