forty winks
noun Informal.
a short nap.
Origin of forty winks
First recorded in 1815–25
Words nearby forty winks
fortune-hunter,
fortune-teller,
fortunetelling,
forty,
forty hours,
forty winks,
forty-eight,
forty-eighth,
forty-eightmo,
forty-fifth,
forty-first
Example sentences from the Web for forty winks
And then father, tired from his morning services, snatched a "forty-winks."
The Quiver, 2/1900 |Various
British Dictionary definitions for forty winks
forty winks
noun
(functioning as singular or plural) informal
a short light sleep; nap
Cultural definitions for forty winks
forty winks
A nap; a short sleep: “If you're feeling drowsy, take forty winks; I'll wake you when our guests arrive.”
Idioms and Phrases with forty winks
forty winks
A brief nap, as in There's just time for forty winks before we have to leave. This expression supposedly was first recorded in 1828 and relies on wink in the sense of “sleep,” a usage dating from the 14th century.