Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • intransitive verb To be half-asleep.
  • intransitive verb To make drowsy.
  • intransitive verb To pass (time) by drowsing.
  • noun The condition of being sleepy.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To be heavy with sleepiness; be half asleep; hence, to be heavy or dull.
  • Synonyms Doze, Slumber, etc. See sleep
  • noun A state of somnolency; a half-sleep.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To make heavy with sleepiness or imperfect sleep; to make dull or stupid.
  • noun A slight or imperfect sleep; a doze.
  • intransitive verb To sleep imperfectly or unsoundly; to slumber; to be heavy with sleepiness; to doze.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun The state of being sleepy and inactive.
  • verb intransitive To be sleepy and inactive (also figurative).
  • verb intransitive To nod off; to fall asleep.
  • verb transitive To advance drowsily. (Used especially in the phrase "drowse one's way" ⇒ sleepily make one's way.)

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb be on the verge of sleeping
  • verb sleep lightly or for a short period of time
  • noun a light fitful sleep

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Perhaps ultimately from Old English drūsian, to sink, be sluggish; see dhreu- in Indo-European roots.]

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