Phrase guide

forty winks

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˌfɔːti ˈwɪŋks/
  • General-American: /ˌfɔɹti ˈwɪŋks/
  • General-American: [-ɾi-]
  • General-American: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɪŋks

1

noun

Meaning 1

A short sleep, especially when taken during the day; a nap.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic, informal, plural, plural-only

Examples

  • Near-synonyms: shut-eye, twenty winks; see also Thesaurus:shut-eye
  • As you’re so tired, why not try to catch forty winks before you leave?

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: shut-eye, twenty winks, cark, doss, rest, sleep

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

sleeping for a short period of time (usually not in bed)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: nap, catnap, cat sleep, short sleep, snooze

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: sleeping

Narrower terms: siesta, zizz

History

Etymology

From forty + winks, possibly referring to a nap supposedly lasting as long as it takes a person to wink (i.e., blink) forty times.

Across languages

Translations

13 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 打盹兒 /打盹儿 (dǎdǔnér) — short sleep — see also nap
  • Finnish: nokoset — short sleep — see also nap
  • Galician: soneca — short sleep — see also nap
  • German: eine Mütze Schlaf (voll) — short sleep — see also nap
  • Greek: σαράντα κλείνει το μάτι (saránta kleínei to máti) — short sleep — see also nap
  • Hungarian: szundi — short sleep — see also nap
  • Hungarian: szundikálás — short sleep — see also nap
  • Hungarian: szundítás — short sleep — see also nap
  • Hungarian: szunyókálás — short sleep — see also nap
  • Latin: intervigilium — short sleep — see also nap
  • Scottish Gaelic: dùsal — short sleep — see also nap
  • Scottish Gaelic: norrag — short sleep — see also nap
  • Swedish: tupplur — short sleep — see also nap