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
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/ˈnɑː(ɹ)kəˌlɛpsi/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:N AA1 R K AH0 L EH2 P S IY0
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A disorder characterized by sudden and uncontrollable attacks of deep sleep, often brief, sometimes accompanied by paralysis and hallucinations.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Topics: medicine, pathology, sciences
Examples
Excitement-induced narcolepsy caused him to sleep through the most important events of his life.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
a sleep disorder characterized by sudden and uncontrollable episodes of deep sleep
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
he believes that narcolepsy is attributable to an inability to suppress REM sleep during waking
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: hypersomnia
History
Etymology
From French narcolepsie. By surface analysis, narco- + -lepsy, from Ancient Greek ναρκόω (narkóō, “put to sleep”) + λῆψις (lêpsis, “seizure”).
Across languages
Translations
50 source translations are retained for this English entry.