snooze
snooze Lexical Profile
snooze Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A function or button on an alarm clock or mobile device that temporarily silences the alarm and sets it to ring again a few minutes later.
"She hit snooze three times before finally getting out of bed for her morning class."
A short, light sleep, especially during the day; a nap.
"My grandfather usually takes a quick snooze in his armchair after Sunday lunch."
Something that is very boring, tedious, or unexciting (informal).
"Critics agreed that the three-hour documentary was a total snooze despite its promising subject."
• verb
To sleep lightly or briefly, especially during the day.
"The cat was snoozing peacefully on the warm windowsill all afternoon."
To pause or delay an alarm, notification, or digital alert for a specified period of time.
"You can snooze non-urgent emails so they reappear at the top of your inbox tomorrow morning."
To be inattentive, careless, or slow to act when an opportunity arises (informal).
"With concert tickets selling out in minutes, if you snooze, you lose."
• Rhymes for snooze
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
First recorded in the late 18th century as cant or slang, 'snooze' is of uncertain origin, though it is likely related to Low German 'snusen' (to snore or breathe heavily through the nose) or imitative of the sound of heavy breathing during sleep.